Lone Wolf
by punkwerewolf
Summary: Secrets were a thing with Jacob and I. We had built our friendship on knowing very little about each other, but now things were starting to get complicated. Dreams of wolves being only one of them. Previously 'Lone Howl'. Jacob Black/OC. Post-Eclipse.
1. Prologue: If I Could Go Back

**Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight it is owned by Stephanie Meyer. **

**A/N:** _Hey all I've decided this needed a good edit. I'm not happy with it and with the feedback I've received I will give this another go and if not will just continue writing this for my friends. So this is the new and improved Prologue with the rest of the chapters being reuploaded this week. Thanks for sticking with me, hope this makes the wait worth while. page6lover xoxo_

** Lone Wolf**

** Prologue: If I could go back...**

I stood with my back against a tree, paralysed by fear as I stared up at the stranger who had ushered me to this place, my heart thudding against my ribs as I waited for the blow to come. Once upon a time this had been our place. But now in the pouring rain, this place seemed to suffocate me.

I could hear his voice on the wind that lapped at my face, my hair plastered to my forehead as I stood in the eerie silence that had descended between us. My murderer and I...

God I wish _he_ was here.

Even if he couldn't stop this, I just wanted to see him one last time. I would give anything to see him again.

I wished hadn't been so selfish. He had wanted us to work, he had done everything he could to make sure I was a part of his life. And I had thrown it back into his face; I had protested about a normal life. Not one full of supernatural beings and one in which my boyfriend didn't have to risk his life every time he stepped out the front door. Maybe if I had been more understanding I wouldn't have been stupid enough to walk into this trap. Maybe I wouldn't be leaving my father to plan my funeral, or for him to stand at the grave site blaming himself for what he couldn't prevent. I wanted to apologise for everything, because soon I wouldn't be able to.

No matter what this guy did to me now, I knew that I still loved him.

I just hoped that he knew that.

His body shook, reminding me of the last time I had seen him change, but the same awe I had felt was evaporated by the fear that held me still. If I ran I would make this worse for everyone, I knew he would track me down and rip me limb from limb. So here I stood under the tree with our initials carved in it, waiting for the blow that would end my life. I closed my eyes as he spoke, his putrid breath flittering over my neck and making my skin crawl, waiting with baited breath for the pain to come.

My breath was stolen from me as I flew through the air, a resounding crack echoing in the air as pain erupted in my skull and a fire burned brightly in my chest. Darkness loomed around me, beckoning me to close my eyes and succumb to the safety of that place.

As I fought to stay conscious; my eyelids drooped as I swore I could hear the anguished howl of a lone wolf. Fitting that the first sound I had heard in my new paranormal life would be the same as my last.


	2. Chapter One: Dreams Ruin Everything

**Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight it is owned by Stephanie Meyer. **

**A/N: New improved Chapter One, let me know what you think.**

**Chapter One: Dreams Ruin Everything**

_I was in the forest; lost in the darkness once more. But strangely enough I wasn't frightened. I knew this was a dream and I knew he would be here soon. A smile gracing my lips as I spied the familiar russet coloured wolf resting beneath the tree I now considered as our meeting place in my dream world. I made my way towards him, my fingers running through his fur as I settled to seat myself at the base of the tree. My hand still moving along his head and to the spot behind his ears that led to a purr like groan escaping from his muzzle, my giggle breaking the otherwise silent greeting between the two of us. _

'_I guess we are here again, huh?' I often talked to him; it was my dream after all so why should I care what others thought of me here. He made another noise as if to answer me, my gaze settling on the claw marks above me on our tree before I looked back down at the giant fur ball that sat beside me. _

_I felt obligated to tell the wolf about my change in situation, the fact that I was moving all because of this dream. He was really the only constant figure I had in my life that I felt I could be completely myself with and to allow my fears to be expressed here. _

'_I'm leaving...I told her about this, she thinks I'm crazy.' _

_His head shot up suddenly, his dark eyes capturing me for a moment before he leapt away from me and ran off into the shrubs. What was happening? This wasn't the same as before. Something had changed._

_I saw it then, the dark figure that had chased me through this dream before he had come to save me. Fear and adrenalin pumped through my veins as I struggled to my feet, not looking back as I took off running in the direction my wolf had disappeared, my feet hitting the wet ground as I tried to escape. I made the mistake of looking back, my body being thrown against a tree as I let out a strangled scream._

'_You shouldn't of come back here...He can't save you now.'_

I awoke with a start, my heart pounding in my chest as I fought to catch my breath; a light sheen of sweat covering my body as I struggled to come to grips with the newest dream. I'd been having the dreams for a while, at first I had written it off as stress, but then it became apparent that I was seriously delusional. My dreams had become more frequent and had suddenly intruded on reality, affecting my schoolwork and affecting my social life. I had found that I would be driving or walking along and out of the corner of my eye I would see shadows moving, and some part of me prayed that it was my wolf. But my mother had caught me staring out into the distance once and when I told her about the dreams my fate was sealed.

Psychiatrists, pills and being ostracised by my own family ensued.

Maybe I should have kept my mouth shut about the dreams.

Maybe if I had they wouldn't have shipped me off to Washington and my father.

With my head propped up against the car door, I watched the scenery pass by with a heavy heart, the dark clouds looming in the sky matching my mood. I had always been a summer girl back home; but it looked like I was going to have to get used to the cold rainy days that were the norm here.

I looked over towards my father, sighing as I realised he actually looked worried about me. Whereas my mother looked like she was more worried about what her socialite friends would think if they found out about her daughter.

My father; Derek Hargrave looked like this whole ordeal had aged him, ever since I had seen him at the airport I'd felt sorry for him having to deal with me. If he didn't have enough stress to worry about with his job and travelling from Forks to La Push every day; now he had to deal with a mentally unstable daughter. Or that was at least how my mother and her shrink had explained to me when they had pushed me onto the plane to Washington.

"Melanie..." Dad finally broke the silence between the two of us, his gaze never leaving the road as he spoke, my gaze locking onto his face as I leaned forward a little. "I'm really sorry about your mother...She had no right to make you feel like you weren't wanted in your own home. But that said I am really glad you are here, gives us some time to be a family again."

It pained him to say that, I knew because I could see the frown that etched across his forehead, but it's not like my relationship with my mother had been that great in the first place.

"Dad...It's okay, really." I was searching for the right words to explain how it was between my mother and me but every time I did I sounded like some spoilt brat. "Mum hasn't really been there for me for a while, she's always been busy with my step dad and it's probably a good thing that she doesn't have to deal with me right now...What did she tell you when she said she was sending me here?"

This shocked him; he turned towards me watching me for a moment before he turned back towards the road. "She mentioned a few things, although she always has had a flair for the dramatics, I don't believe half of what she said about you. But she did say that you were going through some stuff and needed a change of scenery, something about dreams? But it doesn't really matter Mel, as long as you are going to be okay here the circumstances don't change. I want you here...Plus Jace will be back soon so it will be a chance for us to be a family again."

"Thanks Dad...I think I will be happy here..."I answered as I snuggled back into the warmth of the seat, pushing my fringe out of my face as I concentrated on the drive into La Push. I'd lived here until I was six before my mother had left my father and taken me with her; it hadn't bothered me much back then because Dad had always made an effort to come see me or meet me at the airport and look after me for a few weeks. But once we had moved to California, I had barely seen him once a year. Plus my brother Jace had always been a stable figure in my life; he was two years older than I and had chosen to stay with Dad in Washington during the divorce, although we had been separated by states and two parents that loathed each other we had always maintained close contact. Emails, hour long phone calls and visits every now and then had always left us with a close relationship.

We drove in silence for a little while longer before my father drove into La Push, my gaze roaming the place that would be my home for the next year or so, but I couldn't help the nagging feeling in the back of my mind of the shadows that could turn into the wolf. Dad pulled off onto a dirt road, his car lurching a little on its journey before we came to a stop in front of his house. It looked exactly as I remembered; although it was a little weathered it was comforting that nothing had changed. The tiny two storey house sat in contrast to the surrounding trees, and I knew from experience that you could barely see the place from the main road.

"Welcome home, Mel..." Dad announced as he shut off the engine and pulled himself out of the car, I followed his lead leaning against the back of his car as I took in my new surroundings, my gaze resting on a movement in the shrubs behind his house before floating back to my father. He had already unpacked my stuff and was dragging it up the path to the front porch, my gratitude for him being here was evident by the broad smile etched across my face.

I was going to make an effort to like it here. But as far as I could tell I already loved it here because Dad wanted me here.


	3. Chapter Two: Price of Company

**Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight, everything you recognise belongs to Stephanie Meyer**

**Chapter Two: Price of Company**

Great...Just great...

My first day here and I was already contemplating locking myself in my room and never leaving the safety of those walls again. In my father's infinite wisdom he had offered me his car so I could try and acquaint myself with La Push and Forks so I wouldn't get lost when he wasn't around; but who knew that it would break down in the middle of nowhere.

I groaned as I stood with my head under the bonnet of his car, staring at pieces of metal that really meant nothing to me. I needed to get home, but I had no idea where I was and how to get back there without this piece of junk. I flicked my hair out of my face, turning around as I leaned against the car, my gaze training to the menacing looking clouds overhead; the threat of rain very real in my mind. I sighed as I pulled the hood of my jacket up over my face, snuggling back down into the safety of it while I contemplated my next move. I could ring Dad and tell him what happened, but I couldn't even tell him how I'd gotten here or where I was for him to pick me up. So that scenario seemed unlikely. Maybe I could just wait here for a while and when I got back into the car it would miraculously start and I could go on my merry way. Yeah and that idea seemed really plausible, doesn't it Mel?

"Looks like you could use some help..."

I must of jumped about ten foot in the air when the deep voice broke through my silence, I was pretty sure I even let out a little scream of surprise as well. God, how much more girly could I get?

"Um...yeah I guess I do." I murmured stupidly, realising I must of sounded like I had no brain at all; what was this guy going to think of me? Some stranded city girl who had bleached blonde hair and too few brain cells; pity that was way too far from the truth to be remotely funny.

"We'll I know my way around a car or two, want me to have a look so you can get out of here before the next storm?"

Who was this guy? Was he masquerading as my knight in shining armour or were all the guys around here annoyingly helpful?

He was staring at me, I could see that much from underneath the hood of my jumper, deciding that I had been anti-social enough I flicked my hood back from my face, watching him as he suddenly seemed to be even more fascinated in staring at me. Shock flickered across his features as I fought with how uncomfortable I felt under his beautiful gaze, his thousand watt stare scrutinising every part of me. Wherever his gaze roamed I felt like my skin was burning; did he like what he saw? Or was I just fooling myself that anyone would want someone as plain as me.

"That would be great...Thanks." I finally managed to speak trying to just break the awkward silence that had descended between the two of us, sighing in relief when he set to work discerning what he could do about the car. I took this chance to scrutinise him, hoping that I wouldn't get caught staring. He was definite Greek God material; he was tall and muscled, his black hair pulled into a short ponytail at the nape of his neck and he looked to be in his twenties. His lack of winter clothing also struck me as odd, although I had to admit the view of his arms as he stuck his head under the bonnet of my car definitely made the chance of him catching a cold worthwhile. I mentally groaned figuring that a guy this gorgeous and that old wouldn't want to have anything to do with a silly high school girl; but a girl could dream right?

"You're new here..."

It wasn't really a question, more of a statement of facts and I didn't know if he actually wanted me to answer him or not.

"Yeah, my parents decided I needed a change of scenery...so here I am. Plus I think my Dad wants me to finish school here, so he can keep an eye on me..." I murmured as I watched the muscles of his arms shift and bunch with the task he was now doing, his gaze flicking to my face every now and then before returning to his work.

"You still in school...?" I left the question hanging in the air, as I shifted to stare down the road, a gust of wind making my hair flick out around my face. Maybe, just maybe this guy would be somewhere in my age gap; justifying my blatant staring.

"Yeah...my last year too, but I only just got back from an extended holiday so I'm probably in the same boat as you. You go to Forks High School?"

"Yeah, Dad thought it would be easier for me if I just transferred..."I trailed off, wondering why I suddenly needed to spill my guts to this perfect stranger. He could be an axe murderer and I would have just jumped at the chance to spend five minutes with him.

"So what are you doing out here on the Reservation? Come to First Beach or just get lost?"

"Uh I did get lost but I didn't come here I live here...I live with my dad, Derek Hargrave? He has lived out here all his life..." I think I must of stunned him, because he went to whip around to look at me and hit his head, a laugh escaped my lips before I crossed the space between him to touch his arm. "That looked like it hurt, you okay?"

"You live on the Rez? I didn't see that coming..."He muttered to me as he nursed the back of his head, groaning a little as he put pressure on the bump. "That hurt..."

I ended up frowning at him, obviously I looked a little bit too much like my mother to be considered a member of the locals at La Push, but I didn't expect him to try and brain himself due to the news.

"Um...so do you know what's wrong with my car or should I call my Dad to come pick me up?"

"No!"

I jerked my head up to catch his gaze, surprise registering on his face as I watched him, maybe he hadn't meant to say that out loud?

"Uh what I meant to say was no you don't need to call your Dad, because I managed to fix your car...Although I think you should probably get someone to have a look at the engine when you have time...I can have a look for you on the weekend if you need me too?"

"Thanks..."I managed to say as I watched him try to recover from putting his foot in his mouth, he seemed suddenly uneasy. Almost afraid that I would brush him off or reject his proposal for what seemed like an innocent enough question. "Uh, well it's not actually my car I borrowed it from my Dad before I left the house so it's up to him..."

"Oh..."

God, looking at him almost made my heart break. His shoulders had slumped downward, and his gaze was darker than I remembered it being before. He looked lost? I don't know how I would explain it but I suddenly felt like I was being drawn closer to him, all of the mystery surrounding his towering form just made me want to get to know him.

"Um...yeah sorry...?" I searched for his name but I realised that I had been standing with him for a full half hour and I hadn't even got it. "I'm really rude, here I am letting you work on my Dad's car and I haven't even told you my name. I'm Melanie, or Mel whatever comes easier."

He offered me his hand, wiping some of the oil onto his jeans before taking my hand in his, shock creasing my features as our skin came into contact. He had to be running a fever, how was he even standing if he was this sick? He retracted his hand pretty much as soon as it had touched me, obviously afraid he had hurt me. "Jacob Black. I live on the Rez so I should be seeing you around...Uh how about you come to First Beach on Friday afternoon? Give you a chance to meet some of the locals, we usually have a bonfire...it's pretty great actually, I'm sure you will have fun."

"That sounds like a good idea, how can I repay you for restarting my car?"

"If you let me pick you up and take you to First Beach that will be payment enough..."

Okay, was I dreaming or had this suddenly turned into a date?

Who was I kidding? I really didn't care if it was a date or not.

"Okay..."I smiled at him before I went to explain where I lived, he held up a hand automatically silencing me.

"I know where you live, I worked for your Dad a couple of years back to pay for some car parts I needed. So I'll come pick you up about five, we can get out there early and depending on the weather I can show you the sights..."

"Sure...thanks Jacob." I smiled at him again as I slipped into my car, watching him as I pulled off down the road.

I had a date with a Greek God. Life was definitely looking up.

Now if the dreams could just stop, and my hallucinations of wolves howling outside my window would vanish; I would definitely like living here.


	4. Chapter Three: Parenting 101

**Disclaimer: Everything you recognise belongs to Stephanie Meyer, the rest belongs to me sadly.**

**Chapter Three: Parenting 101**

As I pulled up in front of my house I found myself thinking of Jacob Black once more, although those thoughts were short-lived when I spotted my father standing on the porch waving madly at me. With a frown I got out of his car and made my way towards him, obviously my confusion was a joy to him because he broke out into a smile once I reached the porch.

"I have a surprise for you..."

Oh great...Just the words to make me jump for joy. The last time someone said that I was being shipped out here. And the time before that it was a surprise party for my birthday, three months late.

"Dad...? What have you been up to?"

"Nothing... You just wait and see Mels..."

He draped an arm around my shoulders before ushering me over towards the shed, a frown still creasing my features as I walked with him. My mind was coming up with a thousand and one scenarios that all seemed more far-fetched than the previous; he had finally gone insane and converted the shed into a strip joint, he had finally caved and bought me the pony I had wanted for my birthday when I was ten, or the equally depressing fact that my mother had come to see how I was 'settling' in.

"Dad, you do know I hate surprises..."

"Yeah but this surprise you are going to love...Consider it making up for missing your last couple of birthdays..." Dad answered with a grin that could only be described as cocky, his head was even wobbling from side to side with barely contained excitement.

Dad meet sore spot. Thanks for reminding me that for the last 8 years I've received a birthday card a week late and twenty bucks for every single birthday. He used his large hands to cover my eyes, pushing me through the door into the shed before dropping his hands to rest on my shoulders once more.

"Surprise Mels...hope you like it."

Oh my god! I'm pretty sure that if he hadn't of been holding me up I would have fainted. He bought me a car! A new car! Where had he gotten the money for it? Oh who was I kidding I loved it, the shiny black number had my name written all over it. This definitely made up for all the shitty birthday's I'd spent squeezed into my mother's Manhattan apartment praying for a bus to hit me on the top floor.

"Dad, how could you afford this?"

"You need a car, Mels. To get to school, get out on your own on the weekends. I think you are long overdue for something from me..."

He dropped the keys into my outstretched hand, smiling down at me as he opened the car door for me to get accustomed to my new toy. But before I let him bask in his glory, I swung around to hug him. Relishing in the familiar smell of pine and varnish, sighing into his chest as I mumbled my thanks over and over.

"Mum will flip if she found out you bought me a car..."

"Maybe you should mention it next time she phones here, might give the old girl a little drama in her life..."

In the last five minutes, my Dad has officially become the best parent I have ever had, not that it was much of a competition.

I didn't care that we lived in the middle of nowhere, where we often ran out of hot water or the fact that I was starting at a new school in a matter of weeks. All that mattered was that I loved my Dad, and he knew me way too well.


	5. Chapter Four: I Give Good Parent

**Disclaimer: Copyright to the brilliant Stephanie Meyer, I only lay claim to Mel, Derek and this plot**

**A/N: New improved Chapter Four, more coming soon**

**Chapter Four: I Give Good Parent**

"Mel?"

My father's voice floated up to me from down stairs as I reached over to turn my music down so I could carry on a conversation with him without having to leave the safety of my room. The weather all week had been a continuous cycle of rain and storms, so I had taken it as my opportunity to get my room into some sort of order. My books now adorned the shelves, photos were decorating the walls and my computer was sitting on my desk. The wooden trunk at the bottom of my bed was loaded with things that still needed to be put away and my clothes had been organised in my closet. There were still some things I wanted to change, like painting the walls but as Dad had assured me it could wait until the weather cleared up; if it ever cleared up.

So here I found myself on a Friday afternoon, my head stuck in a book and music floating around my room to try and drown out the sound of the rain.

"Yeah...?"

"There's a young man down here who I believe you are going down to First Beach with?"

First Beach? Young Man?

Oh shit. How could I have forgotten that the Greek god would be here to pick me up to go to the beach? I guess when it rains every single day and you barely see the sun for more than five minutes you forget that the beach is just around the corner. I looked down at my sweatpants and loose jumper, nearly falling off the bed as I rushed towards my closet looking madly for a pair of jeans to wear.

"Um...Can you tell him I'll be down in a minute?"

I could hear my father chuckle from the stairs, before his voice continued talking to Jacob, although I wished I could stop him from embarrassing me I had to make myself at least look half presentable rather than rocking down the stairs in something I wouldn't be caught dead in. I rummaged for a while, kicking my toe on the desk as I pulled my favourite pair of dark wash jeans on, finding a green off the shoulder shirt that didn't seem to be crying out date.

Why was I going to all this trouble? Because you can't rock up to a meeting with a Greek God looking like a homeless person.

"Mel? You alright up there, I heard something crash." Dad's voice floated up to me as a caught my reflection in the mirror, fixing up my hair as I put the last touches to a little bit of make up on. Deeming myself presentable I grabbed my house keys, my phone and my jacket before slipping my converse on and making my way out of my room and down the stairs.

"It was nothing, just couldn't find my keys, Dad." I answered as I caught sight of the two of them in the lounge room, my breath nearly catching in my throat upon my second sighting of Jacob Black. The boy was definitely fine. Chiselled features, muscles on muscles, charisma seeping from every part of him and I was surprised to note he seemed comfortable talking with my father even though I could see him fidget nervously from my position in the doorway.

Although my presence was soon noted, his dark gaze lifting from my father to me standing in the doorway, he stood in one fluid movement. I could feel his gaze roaming over me before he smiled at me, my heart beating frantically as I shrugged my shoulders.

"You look great, Melanie. Almost too good for you to be spending the afternoon at First Beach with my knuckle headed friends, but at least the weather has fined up." Jacob greeted me, making his way over to my side his smile still dazzling me as he swung a pair of keys out of his pocket. I noted he was wearing a pair of old looking jeans and a black shirt that barely contained his muscles, but hey who was I to complain?

"And when were you going to tell me you had run into Jacob Black, Mel? He is a good kid this one, helped me out last year..."

Dad's voice broke through my stupor, shaking my head as I realised I was practically drooling over him and this wasn't even a date! I turned my attention back to my father and was just about to answer him when Jacob interrupted; taking the answer right out of my hands as I shrugged at my dad's perplexed expression.

"Well I was driving by when I saw a car pulled up on the side of the road, thought I'd give the driver a hand, you know? And that's when I met Melanie, I didn't even realise she was your daughter until she mentioned your name Mr H...So in return for my services I suggested she come meet the rest of the crew in La Push down at First Beach, I think there will be some storytelling, definitely a bon fire but I promise I'll make sure she is home before my curfew at least." He grinned at my Dad and I realised that he could probably get away with anything with that thousand watt smile of his.

Dad seemed impressed, which I'm guessing was a good omen to hanging out with Jacob and his friends for the day. I could feel myself relax a little; maybe meeting the locals wouldn't be quite as bad as I thought, after all this was my home.

"Sorry about that Mel, didn't realise the old girl was going to give out on you, good thing I bought you your welcome home present now, huh?" Dad teased his smile reassuring me, before his attention flicked back to Jacob beside me. "Thanks for helping her out the other day Jacob, tell your Dad I'll be around to take him to Charlie's sometime tomorrow, you know how they are with sports and the big screen TV. You two have fun and if the weather turns bad make sure the two of you get home in time, you hear?"

"Yeah of course, I'll see you later Dad."

"Catch you later, Mr H."

Jacob began walking towards the front door and I had to hurry to catch up with him, nearly running into his back as he came to a sudden stop on the front porch. I raised my eyebrow at him as I tried to figure out why he had suddenly stopped when he had seemed in a hurry a moment ago.

"You were worried weren't you...? That your Dad was going to embarrass you in front of me?" Jacob's voice disturbed my thoughts, his smile lighting up his entire face as he laughed. "Don't worry Mel, I give good parent."


	6. Chapter Five: Meeting the Locals

**Update: Wow, I know it's been long but I've been super busy and I found the inspiration for this as I was writing an Essay due tomorrow. So I've decided to write this and write my Essay tomorrow morning. Let me know what it's like and I hope the new chapter will be up quicker, seeing as it's already half written. Thanks to those who have stuck with me, I love you all. page6lover xoxo**

**Copyright: I sadly still do not own Twilight, Stephanie Meyer does. **

**Chapter Six: Meeting the Locals**

Jacob and I had traipsed across my front lawn to where he had parked his car behind my Dad's own beat up vehicle. Jacob surged forward to stop me from opening the passenger side door, a smirk present on his face as he opened the door for me. "What did you do that for?"

"Just making sure you are looked after, what kind of date would I be if I let you open your own door...?" Jacob answered my question as I slid into the seat, watching him as he shut the door before bounding over to jump in the driver's side.

This was a date. Oh god I was in trouble.

I watched him as he started up the car, pulling out of my father's driveway and finding his way back onto the road from the sea of trees. Silence descended upon us as he drove, but it wasn't uncomfortable it actually made me feel safe to be in his car just listening to the engine and the sound of the two of us breathing.

"So if you don't mind me asking, why did you move to La Push?" Jacob's question broke through the silence, drawing my gaze from the trees whizzing by to settle back on the driver. Pushing my hair back behind my ears as I contemplated how much I should tell him about why I had moved back to Washington.

"It's a long story...Dad has lived here all of his life and when my mother left him to move to New York I went with her. After a few years, she started seeing a guy from California; they got married and she decided to move us out to Los Angeles so he could pursue an acting career or something like that." I explained with a giggle, my step-father's acting talent had only landed him one notable job, playing a corpse on Law and Order. Big career move there, why not move your family to California just in case you are nominated for an Oscar for that.

"My mum has always kind of been a social climber, even when she still lived in New York but kids don't really fit into her plan as well as I think she wanted. My older brother got a job and saved up enough money to travel for a while, leaving me under her excellent parenting skills so when I got suspended from school for skipping class she took it as a slap in the face and booked me for a reality check, sending me to La Push with very little sun and a father with a gun licence."

Jacob's booming laugh echoed in his car as we drove, his gaze leaving the road to stare at me for a moment as he continued to snicker. "You got suspended? I wouldn't have taken you as a bad girl Mel..."

"You'd be surprised Jake..."His head whipped around when the nickname left my lips, causing me to shift uncomfortably in my seat as I shrugged, trying to avoid his gaze. "Sorry..."

He was silent for a little while, his gaze turning back to the road before he reached over to squeeze my hand. "No don't be sorry, it's just no one has called me Jake in a long time...I like it." The comfort he brought me made me sigh in relief, settling back into the seat and continuing my silent watching of the scenery going past. And the funny thing is I didn't even mind that he continued to hold my hand as we drove.

"So California? Don't you think it will be hard to fit in here? Washington's a bit different than sun, sand and movie stars; especially Forks and La Push. We barely even see the sun..."

"Yeah but my Dad and I click, plus La Push doesn't seem too bad. Tall, dark and handsome knights come and save a girl when her car breaks down and then woo her father into allowing her out with people she barely knows, I could definitely get used to this. And if it means trading in Sunny California I think I can handle it..."

"You think I'm handsome, huh?" Jacob teased me as I felt a blush creeping over my cheeks, his gaze flicking between me and the road as he laughed at me. But his laugh died when he finally extracted his hand from my own and pulled his car off onto the car park above First Beach. "Come on we had better get down there..."

Before I had even had a chance to close the car door behind me, Jacob had grabbed my hand and proceeded to haul me down the path towards the beach. He was like a kid at Christmas eager to show off his shiny new toy, which made me giggle as I followed him down the path.

"Bout time you got here Jake thought we would have to send a search party for you..."

A booming voice crossed over the beach to meet us, followed by booming chuckles as we came closer to the gathering. Driftwood logs were set up around the makings of a bonfire and set up among the logs were figures that I assumed were Jacob's friends, each one of them looking bigger than my first impression of Jacob had been.

A wolf whistle greeted me as we came to a stop, my heart hammering wildly in my chest as my nerves fought for control over my body.

"Who's the hottie?" The owner of the wolf whistle greeted me as he stood, looking between Jacob and I before offering me his hand. "Embry Call, if he gets too boring you can always come sit with me."

"Embry..."Jacob's voice was full of warning, as I took Embry's hand in mine shaking it before pulling my hand back from his. I wasn't sure whether or not I should be flattered by his friend or worried that I was going to cause a fight between the two of them. But I soon didn't have to worry as Embry winked at me and jumped back towards his seat grinning at me as he eyed off Jacob.

Jacob looked down at me, rolling his eyes at his friend's behaviour before his fingers entwined with mine, providing me with reassurance before he dived into introductions. "Guys this is Mel..."

With that proclamation I received hello's and was greeted in true Quileute fashion, by bone crushing hugs and being wedged between teenage boys who were more than happy to regale me with stories of Jacob's misspent youth.

By the time the bonfire had been lit and we had all finished eating the huge meal that Emily had prepared I felt like I had always belonged here; I got along with everyone and I felt like I could remember everyone by name. Something I hadn't managed back home.

I found that despite Embry's incessant flirting, he was really a big goof ball. Throughout the night he proclaimed his love for me while he draped himself over my lap, telling me that it was time I ran away with him. His antics didn't last long as every time he started to get a little bit too insistent, Jacob would whisk in and save me before I felt the need to push Embry to the ground.

Quil Ateara, Jacob's other best friend, had sat with me for part of the night telling me stories of Jacob as a kid and what the three of them used to get up to. I would have probably spent most of my time with Quil but he was busy looking after Emily's niece Claire, who was currently hitting him on the foot with a stick.

Paul was probably one of the largest guys in their group, not that it was hard when they were all 6 feet something and I was barely 5'8. But he seemed to like teasing Jacob and Jared, although every now and then he lapsed into these angry stare offs with another member of the group. Although Paul spent most of his time brooding I found it easy to talk to him, mainly because he reminded me so much of my brother Jace.

Jared and Paul were sharing a log, although Jared's girlfriend Kim commanded most of his attention. The two of them spent a lot of the time staring into each other's eyes and sharing long lingering looks across the fire. It was slightly sickening to watch but I was assured by Paul that I would get used to it.

Sam Uley was the oldest of the group, and he seemed to have this gravitational pull that all the other guys revolved around. He was obviously their 'leader' or the go to guy for all of their problems, and with one careful look he could quiet them down or make a disagreement evaporate.

Emily Young was the resident cook and Sam's girlfriend, her cheerfulness and kindness made me automatically feel like I was a part of their little group and I hadn't even noticed her scars until I was sitting talking to her by the fire after the stories had been told. She had told me not to worry that she was used to people staring and I told her that maybe they stared because she was truly beautiful and blessed to have a guy like Sam worship the ground she walked on, she proceeded to tell me that the blush that had crept over her cheeks was just that she was sitting too close to the fire.

Seth Clearwater seemed to idolise Jacob, I could tell by the way he sought Jacob out in the crowd of people and by the way he seemed to go out of his way to be nice to me for Jacob's sake. For most of the night whenever Jacob had been trying to garner some of my attention, Seth lingered by my side making sure I was okay and that I wasn't bored or cold or hungry. The kid was a lot of work but he was extremely cute.

It was his sister Leah who made the most uncomfortable, she would mumble under her breath when I was close to her before directing all of her anger at me. But it was a reassuring hand on my arm that belonged to Seth that assured me that she was always like this with strangers.

Brady and Colin were the youngest of the group; while they made a few attempts to talk to me they mostly kept to each other leaving me alone to be bombarded by the rest of the guys.

Billy Black and Quil's grandfather warranted our full attention at one point in the night, the bonfire casting shadows over our faces as they settled in to tell the legends of the Quileute tribe. I sat on the sand, my back leaning against the log that Jacob was sitting on. During the story telling, Jacob tensed every now and then causing my attention to divert back towards him before he would smile reassuringly at me and then motion me to pay closer attention.

It was getting later as I sat in the same spot I had been sitting for the legends, my gaze resting on the flames with my arms wrapped around me. I had enjoyed myself with Jacob's friends, they all seemed to be happy to see me and torment Jacob at the same time. But it was now that silence descended upon the group that I realised I probably needed to be heading home, sweeping my gaze across the ground in search of Jacob.

"Looking for me?" Jacob's voice broke me from my search, my heart lurching into my throat as I turned to find him smiling down at me. He collapsed onto the sand beside me, draping his jacket across my shoulders as we stared at each other.

"Thanks..." I murmured as I snuggled further into his jacket, his earthy scent washing over me as I tried to remember why I had been looking for him. "It's getting pretty late; Jake...I probably should be going home."

A fleeting look of sadness passed across his features before he scrunched up his nose, looking out towards his friends before nodding solemnly. "Yeah I'll drop you home, Mel." He stood, making his way over towards his friends who waved their farewells at me as I got to my feet. The two of us making our way back up towards his car, neither of us speaking until we had both gotten in the car and were already on our way back towards my house.

"Thanks for inviting me tonight Jacob, your friends are awesome I don't think I've laughed so much in a long time." I admitted as I continued to snuggle into Jacob's jacket, my gaze flicking to his face as he smiled at me.

"I'm glad you came, it's the first time I've been back with them for a while and having you there kind of helped..." He confessed to me as his hand sought mine out, his warmth seeping into my cold fingers as I shivered. "Thanks for being here Mel..."

We both sat in silence our hands clasped over the gear stick as he drove me back to my house, pulling up in our front yard and turning the engine off. "Do you want to come to Port Angeles with me on Sunday? We can go to a movie or something?" Jacob's voice actually brought me back to reality my gaze settling on his face once more as my hand hovered over the door handle.

Should I say yes?

Should I say no?

The answer was clear. I had to make the best of my time here. And being with Jake felt, I don't know...right?

"Sounds great...Do you want to ring me tomorrow and we can figure out what we are going to do?" I found myself answering, watching as his face lit up in a smile.

"Sure."

"I had a great time tonight Jake, thanks..."I draped his jacket over the dash board as I opened the door and slipped from his car, dragging my feet across the grass and up to our front porch before I looked back to where Jacob was still sitting in his car. I waved awkwardly before I watched his car drive off our property and back down the dark road.

A few moments later I was in the safety of my bedroom, falling back onto my bed as I closed my eyes. "Wow..."

Maybe things were really looking up for me.


	7. Chapter Six: Oh Brother

**Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight. Stephanie Meyer does. I own Mel and Jace though.**

**A/N: I know I suck! I do know that I have been exceedingly slack, this chapter has been written for nearly a month and I just haven't had a chance to post it. I have wrote the prologue to another story which should be up after exams, and a chapter of this as well as She Wolf is in the works. Again I am sorry, but my very expensive university degree comes first and after Thursday I shall be free! And New Moon is out on Thursday so all will be great . Much love and please review. punkwerewolf**

**Chapter Six: Oh Brother. . .**

I was still in a semi-euphoric state over how well the night had gone even after I had showered and dressed for bed, deciding that the break in the weather and the lightening of my mood needed my summer pyjama's that I had stuck in the back of my cupboard when I had gotten here.

After a couple of hours laying awake in bed thinking about how much I had enjoyed myself, sleep finally claimed me. As always I expected to dream of the wolf and the guy who managed to attack me just before I woke up but for some reason tonight it changed.

I dreamt of Jacob instead.

We were on the cliffs overlooking the ocean, and he was telling me the stories of the Quileute legends as the moon made its way across the sky.

And for the first time in a long time I slept through the night.

I woke up to a clap of thunder, my eyes fluttering open to my darkened room as rain began to streak outside my window. I was slowly getting used to waking up most days with clouds looming over head, but somehow today it didn't damper my mood. I don't think anything could have made me forget the cling of happiness that had stayed with me since Jacob had drove off from my house.

I attempted to curl up under the doona and go back to sleep, but the thunder outside continued to pound against my temples so I finally conceded defeat and got up. I took a detour from my room to the bathroom, throwing my hair back in a ponytail before brushing my teeth and heading downstairs. My attention wavered on the window outside as I walked into the kitchen and came across the only person who had ever made my life bearable.

"Looks like you need to catch up on your beauty sleep little sis..." I heard his voice before I saw him and an excited scream escaped my lips before I launched myself into his waiting arms. My brother always knew exactly how to make an entrance and as we embraced for the first time in three years our sibling connection flared back to life.

"God I've missed you Jace..." My uttered welcome was muffled as I buried my head in his chest, inhaling the scent that had always comforted me from my nightmares. Jace had always smelt of salt water and oranges, it was a weird combination but I had always associated it with home.

Jace chuckled as he returned my embrace, his strong arms erasing the pain of the last couple of months as we stood in our father's kitchen. "Yeah I heard that you had really gone off the deep end without me to pick up the pieces, the old bag still giving you strife about not being the perfect kid?"

It was then I realised he didn't really know the truth.

Mum hadn't told him.

Dad had called him home on a whim, hoping that my brother could get through to me when no-one else could.

I stiffened as I realised I was going to have to tell him the truth. I was going to have to tell Jace something that I didn't even know how to explain.

"Jace...You don't know the half of it..."

Jace had dropped his gaze to my face, confusion evident on his features as he tried to figure out exactly what I was hiding from him.

"Enlighten me, Mels."

I sighed as I pulled from his embrace, moving so I was leaning against the kitchen counter and so that I was staring anywhere but at his face.

"After you left it got worse, she started going on about how if I didn't start hanging around the right people and doing better at school that I was going to end up like you. I never knew why that was so bad and then one day I come home and I've got a pile of college applications that she wants me to fill in for early admission because Robert has some huge connection with the Dean of Harvard or something. But I guess she could just see me repeating all the mistakes you made, the more she pointed out what I was doing the worse I got. Jace I couldn't handle it and then I started seeing things...it started as dreams and then it just escalated into seeing things when I was wide awake. She got me in therapy so fast my head spun, drugged me out on that many anti-depressants I couldn't get out of bed...and then when nothing else worked she sent me here so that I couldn't mess up her image. I'm the tanned kid she had when she was young and naive. I'm the mistake that was still a thorn in her side. I hated it and every time I cut school or did something stupid I was doing it because of you."

I finished telling him and finally refocused on his face, watching as Jace nervously ruffled the front of his hair his gaze holding mine before he held his arms out to me again. I collapsed into his arms once more as a sob wracked my frame, everything I had wanted to tell my brother since he left had just been left out in the open. I had missed him with every fibre of my being and now we were on an even playing field again.

"You should have picked up a phone, Mel. I would have been on the first flight home and dragged you away from the nutcase." I could hear the chastising tone in his voice, the tone he only ever used when he was angry that had kept something from him. Granted normally it was just that I neglected to tell him I'd received detention or had snuck out without him knowing.

"I couldn't do that, you were jet-setting across the world away from her and I didn't want you involved because I knew it would get worse."

I knew it was cowardly but I hadn't wanted Jace involved, he was my safe haven away from all of the drama that my mother had instilled in me since we had moved. Jace had only been with her for a short time, he had felt the brunt of her anger and disapproval before but somehow I knew if I had of called him home she would have kicked me out of home for good.

"Well you and I are back together to take on the world, so no more secrets okay little sis?" He ruffled my hair before the two of us pulled away, I took the chance to punch him in the gut as I reorganised my hair, taking great delight in the grunt he gave me before I set about trying to find something for the two of us to eat for breakfast.

"Where's Dad?"

"Got called in to work, some old lady's electricity went out and she's afraid her cat will go without its fix of soaps so he went in to see what he could do..."

I laughed at Jace's assumption, throwing a box of cereal at his head before the two of us sat down at the kitchen table. Although as I lifted my spoon to my mouth I rolled my eyes, catching the smirk on Jace's face as he stared at me from across the table.

"What?"

"Dad told me you have been dating..."

"Correction, Jace, one date. I've been on one date which involved meeting people my age, I wouldn't exactly call it the most romantic outing I've ever been on. And another thing how is it any of your business?"

I had answered too quickly, I knew. Nothing got past Jace.

"Cause Dad let me know that you would be meeting said date tomorrow night and I had to play the big brother card seeing as he won't be here..."

Oh great. Jacob would definitely run away as soon as Jace put on the stern older brother face.

"I hate you Jace..." I grumbled as I set to work trying to concentrate on the cereal in front of me rather than the bizarre look on my brother's face.

"Yeah I love you too Mel..."


	8. Chapter Seven: Annoyance Value

**Disclaimer: Owned by Stephanie Meyer, again Jace and Mel are mine.**

**A/N: Thanks to my procrastination skills here is a new chapter, I will be working on the next chapter but I assure you it will not be posted until Friday or Saturday, I need to study for my exam on Thursday and that means very very little free time. Shout outs go to Jayn and kikikiki, for reviewing the last chapter: thank you so much. And to Emix Curse, Gryffindor Gurl2, princesaangelbebe for reviewing previously. You guys make me want to get these out quicker so keep up the feedback. Now I am off to further my study about Ancient Rome. love you all-a tiny little bit stressed-punkwerewolf**

**Chapter Seven: Annoyance Value**

"Phone...!"

Jace was yelling at me from across the room, his feet draped across the chair as his fingers nimbly tried to run my character off the road as we fought it out in Mario Kart. I gave him a disbelieving look before throwing the controller at him and springing across the room to grab the phone from its station in the hall.

It was a matter of conceding defeat or getting in trouble later for ignoring the phone, so as I sighed into the receiver I wasn't expecting who was on the other line.

"Hello?"

"_Ugh Hi, I'm looking for Mel?"_

"Yeah this is her..."

"_Oh hi, I didn't recognise your voice. It's me Jacob..."_

With that admission a smile automatically lit up my face, all thoughts of losing to my brother at Mario Kart forgotten as I realised why he was calling. I couldn't believe that I had forgotten about him calling, but for some reason just hearing his voice made the dreary weather and putting up with an annoying brother a tiny bit more bearable.

"Hey Jake..."

"_I hope I'm not interrupting or anything but I was ringing to see if you were still up for going to Port Angeles tomorrow?"_

"Yeah I told you I'd go, plus it will be pretty boring here."

I could hear Jace's indignant cough and I knew he was listening intently to the conversation just to see if he was missing out on anything.

"_Great..."_ I could hear the excitement in his voice although he tried to mask it with a cough, earning a giggle from me before he continued. _"The movies on at six thirty, I'll come pick you up tomorrow, around four?"_

"That sounds great... I'll see you then."

"_See you then Mels..."_

I think I stood staring at the phone in my hands for about ten minutes before Jace coughed from the lounge room once more, I forced my gaze to flick towards where my brother was before placing the phone back on its stand.

"You okay out there? Do I need to give you CPR?"

"Ha ha, very funny Jason..." It was exceptionally rare for me to use his full name, so I knew when I did he would shut his mouth for at least five minutes before starting on me again. I took the little reprieve to relax before striding back into the lounge room and throwing myself back into the seat I had previously occupied. Mustering up the angriest face I could, I glared at my brother, waiting for him to turn around before I questioned him. "You were listening weren't you?"

"Guilty."

I scoffed at him as my controller sailed across the room and landed on the seat beside me, I looked down at it before back at my brother before shrugging. "I'm sick of losing to you, how about you play and I just watch?"

"Conceding defeat already, Mel? Gee you've gotten all girly on me..." Jace chuckled as he turned his attention back to the television, a smirk appearing on my own lips as he didn't even suspect that the pillow beside me had miraculously travelled across the room and smashed him in the head. Taking great delight in the grunt of pain that escaped his mouth as his character disappeared over the cliff on the television.

"Serves you right..."

* * *

"There's no way I'm letting you leave the house dressed like that..." I heard Jace chastise me before I saw him, rummaging through my jewellery box as I tried to find the earrings he had given me for my last birthday. I looked up from my bed to my brother, raising an eyebrow as I shrugged at him.

It was still dark and gloomy so I had dug around in my closet for my black jeans, black boots and my favourite emerald green shirt which was only half covered by my leather shrug jacket. It had been a few months since the last time I had gone on a date, but it was just the movies and considering it was still raining I wasn't going to chance sitting in the movie theatre shivering for a couple of hours while Jacob laughed at me.

"Like what Jace? This is what I normally wear..."

My answer was kind of half hearted as I finally found the silver hoops I had been looking for, placing them in my ears as I turned my attention back to getting ready rather than the annoying presence at my door. He had been joking for the last twenty-four hours that he was going to play the over-protective big brother card when Jacob arrived to pick me up, I hadn't taken him seriously but now I was contemplating how to kill him and dispose of the body without anyone suspecting anything.

"Just wanted to say it, that's all...I haven't done this in a while, I'm out of practice. Here..." His voice trailed off as he handed the silver locket I normally wore to me, I took it as I clasped it around my neck and looked back to my brother.

"You do realise you have nothing to worry about, Jacob's nice. This isn't California where I'm going to be abducted by a gang member or something, just relax."

"Yeah yeah..." Jace mimicked as the two of us fought down the stairs, pushing each other in an attempt to annoy the other before I heard the knocking at the door. Jace and I exchanged looks before I plastered myself between him and the door, giving him a look that put him in his place before I pulled the front door open. My heart lurching in my chest at the sight of Jacob standing on my door step once more, his ruffled hair had a few water droplets hanging from it and his black shirt clung to him as if he had just run a marathon.

"Mel...you look great..." He greeted me as his eyes roamed my body, which for some reason didn't even bother me, before they rested back on my face shining me the most brilliant smile before he caught sight of Jace.

"Hey, you must be her brother. I'm Jacob..." I watched as Jacob stepped over the front step and offered my brother his hand, the two of them staring at each other in some sort of childish stare off before my brother ignored his hand and launched into a tirade about how to treat his sister.

"Look here buddy, you need to have her home by midnight. No sex in the backseat of your car, no making out on the porch when you drop her off. If you touch her and she doesn't want you to I have given her permission to make you a eunuch and if you hurt her you have to answer to me."

Silence had descended over the three of us, as I looked from Jacob to Jace and waited for one of them to crack.

"Jake, this is my brother Jason. He isn't normally insane but feel free to ignore him, I do." I offered the introductions as a way to break the tension, grabbing my purse from the table in the hall as I dared to glance back at my brother. "I'll talk to you in the morning Jason."

I offered him that goodbye as Jacob took my hand and led me out onto the porch, the front door slamming shut behind us as I rolled my eyes at the childish behaviour that my brother had reverted to.

"Sorry about him, he likes to annoy people."

"Nah I get it, I've got two older sisters I know how it is..."

I looked down at our joined hands as I nodded, receiving a squeeze of my fingers before Jacob led me back over to his car and we slipped into the warmth of it before the rain got to us too badly.

"So what are we seeing?"

"It's a surprise..." Jacob's voice had turned a little husky as he reversed out of our driveway and down the road leading into Forks, leaving me to relax into my seat as he fiddled with the CD he had obviously chosen for the ride.

Have I mentioned how much I hate surprises? We'll I do.

But coming from the lips of the Greek God driving me to Port Angeles, I really couldn't have cared less.


	9. Chapter Eight: Patience is a Virtue

**Disclaimer: Twilight belongs to Stephanie Meyer, I own Jace and Mel.**

**A/N: Happy Summer my happy readers! November was my best month for hits/visitors to this story. In a week I had over 600, which made a very stressful week before exams that much more bearable. As I stand, Lone Wolf is coming to a nice point. I am dealing with issues of Bella and Edward in the next chapter so look forward to some conflict and in three chapters the new 'evil' will slowly be introduced. It has been hinted at, but does anyone hazard a guess at what it could be? Btw, what does everyone think of New Moon the movie? Good/Bad? I personally loved it, hated that some things were way different than the book but I love that they stay true to the integral parts of the story. And Jacob Black + the Wolf Pack, Need I say more *swoons*. Anyway enjoy and thank you so much to those that reviewed, hope this has been worth the wait. I hope to have two chapters up before christmas and maybe even a few around Christmas. Love you all-punkwerewolf**

**Chapter Eight: Patience is a Virtue**

"What are you up to?" I was pretty sure that Jacob had lost his mind when he walked back towards me after purchasing our tickets in the cinema, his hands coming up to cover my eyes as I voiced my question. I had noticed over the course of our drive that Jacob emanated warmth from every fibre of his being and I was actually thankful for his hands on my face as it chased the chill that had settled over my body since our walk from where Jacob had parked the Rabbit in Port Angeles.

"Organising your surprise..."

I wanted to groan and roll my eyes at his vague answer but I actually wanted to know what he had planned. I had pestered him for the two hour drive to Port Angeles and he had just given me this annoyingly cute smirk and then said 'Wait and See' before we had fallen back into easy conversation. I found that Jacob was easy to talk to. He was one of those people that would make you comfortable even in the strangest circumstances. Even though we had barely known each other for more than a week I found that I could interact with him easier than even some of my friends back in Los Angeles.

"Come on Jake, you can't stop me from knowing all night you will have to let me see."

"Just work with me..."

He began manoeuvring me through the crowd, his hands still clamped around my eyes before he finally pushed me through a door. It was here that he took his hands from my eyes and ushered me up the stairs towards the back row, I was reluctant at first throwing him a glance over my shoulder before begrudgingly stomping up the stairs and coming to a stop where he told me to.

Once I had sat down beside him and sufficiently realised that there was no way I was going to guess what we were watching I turned to Jacob. "So? Are you going to tell me now or do I have to wait?"

"Patience is a virtue."

"I don't have any."

He chuckled at this, taking my hand in his before answering me. "I noticed."

My gaze trailed down from his face to rest on our entwined fingers, I had come to the conclusion that Jacob was one of those people who sought out contact with others. Whenever I was least expecting it, his large hand would encompass my own with warmth and it would always be accompanied by a slight squeeze which would bring a sly smile to my lips.

I managed to take my jacket off, leaving it with my purse on the seat beside me as I finally made myself comfortable in the seat beside Jacob. The lights slowly dimming as I laughed.

"Sure you don't want to tell me? I could be deathly afraid of clowns or something and you would be stuck with me outside for two hours?"

"Just wait..." He squeezed my hand but I caught the glinting of his smile in the corner of my eye before the room finally went black and I was greeted with a howl and the silver title across the screen heralded 'Howl to the Darkness'.

It was then I prayed he hadn't brought me to some stupid horror movie.

* * * * * *

"So how did you like it?" Jacob's voice broke through the silence as we sat in some quaint little restaurant after the movie had finished and the two of us had finished eating. I was just as happy to have gone back to La Push and grabbed something on the way home but he had been adamant that we had to have a sit down meal on our 'first official date'.

But as he brought up the movie I thought about what had gone on during the two hours of my life that he had made me endure.

Howl to the Darkness was a movie about werewolves. I had half expected it to be full of gore and bloodshed but the movie was nothing like I had first feared. I was pretty sure I sat there dumbfounded for the most part of the movie, only snapping back to reality when Jacob's arm snuck across the back of my seat and pulled me closer to his warmth. By that stage I actually began to pay attention to the movie, despite nearly having a heart attack when the lead actor became a wolf that looked eerily familiar to that from my dream, and enjoyed being curled up in the darkness with Jacob Black.

"It was good...I didn't expect you to drag me to a movie about werewolves though, I was expecting you to pick the worst Romantic movie to make me endure."

He chuckled as he leaned over to squeeze my hand in his large one. "I'm full of surprises Mel."

Oh yeah. I was slowly coming to the conclusion that I would never be able to predict what was going on in his head. My gaze dropped to my hands that were folded across the table, my thoughts flicking back and forth between the events of the night.

"Plus..." I hadn't expected him to continue, so I soon snapped my gaze back to his face and gave him my attention once more. "You have to admit it did have a bit of romance in it. The Alpha werewolf went all around the globe to find his mate who had been captured by Vampires. That's dedication."

"It's also a movie Jacob..."

"Sure, Sure." He chuckled, but the laugh didn't reach his eyes as he spoke. "I kind of have a soft spot for wolves. Comes from growing up with the legends, you remember? That us Quileute's are descended from wolves?"

"The bonfire was on Friday, Jake. I do remember."

"Sorry, just thought I'd remind you..."

Silence descended between the two of us as I took his words to heart. So the guy had a thing for wolves? Was that so strange? I was the one that had been shipped away from my home in exile to Washington due to my dreams of a russet coloured wolf. Maybe we were fated to be friends. He had an obsession and so did my subconscious.

"So are we heading back to La Push now? You do realise Jace will kill us if we are any later than I originally told him?"

This earned another chuckle from Jacob as we both stood, I was stunned as he slipped my jacket back over my shoulders and escorted me out of the restaurant after dropping money on the table to cover our bill. "Leave your brother to me; I'm sure I could take him in a fight."

I wasn't willing to admit that my brother had no chance against Jacob. Jacob could probably breathe on my brother and he would keel over and suck his thumb.

The two of us walked hand in hand out into the street and just down the road to where Jacob had parked his Rabbit. Once the two of us were comfortably seated, Jacob started his car and the two of us fell into easy conversation on the drive back to La Push.

* * *

I heard Jacob release a groan once we reached my drive way, a giggle passing my lips as I poked him in his side.

"You act like I'm never going to see you again." I teased as he pulled to a stop in front of the house, the rain had eased up since we had left so I wasn't surprised when Jacob came around to the passenger side door and helped me out of his car.

"Yeah but..." He paused as he looked down into my face. "I feel like things are going to change and you aren't going to want to hang around me."

What had brought this on? We had been having an awesome time all night and suddenly he thought I didn't want to be friends with him.

"Why?"

He shrugged and it was then that he looked so unsure of himself that he looked like he really was my age. Who knew the Greek god could get all insecure?

"Jake, trust me that isn't going to happen anytime soon. I like hanging around you, you have made my first week here bearable and for that I owe you." I paused as I realised he was still frowning. Something was definitely up, so I decided I was determined to see a smile grace his features before he left. "Jake, I like you."

He blinked at me, staring into my soul with his dark eyes as we stood within a whisper of each other. Casually I noticed that his gaze slipped down to my lips and I knew the feeling was mutual. Before I knew what was happening I was drawn into his warmth and our lips met. It was probably the chastest kiss I had received since I was in 8th grade but something loomed behind it, reminding me of desire and love? Thoughts slowly became incoherent as a lack of oxygen caused the two of us to part, although Jacob continued our contact with his forehead resting against mine.

"I'm sorry..."

"What are you sorry for?"

"Kissing you..."

"Only be sorry for kissing me if you didn't mean it, Jake."

He beamed down at me, capturing my lips once more before the two of us parted once more and Jacob's glance left my face to my house.

"I think your brother would rather I return you..."

Sure enough when I followed his gaze, I could see Jace standing at the now open front door and I knew I was in for a lecture as soon as Jake left. I laughed as Jacob made to walk me towards my brother, but I stopped him.

"I had better say goodnight...Thanks for everything Jake, I had a great time. But next time we go see a movie, can I pick?"

A smirk graced his lips as he bent down to my level, mischief gleaming in his eyes as I wondered what he really wanted to say.

"Does that mean I can ask you out more often?"

I rolled my eyes, deeming that as enough of an answer as I placed a kiss on his cheek and left him standing by his car. When I reached Jace, I caught the smirk on my brother's face before I turned to wave to Jacob as he pulled out of the driveway.

"Please tell me that the two of you weren't making out all night."

Way to ruin my night, Jace.

Eh, who was I kidding? Nothing could wipe the smile off my face as I disappeared upstairs despite my brother's protests.


	10. Chapter Nine:Whose Wedding Is It Anyway?

**Disclaimer: I only own the plot, Mel, Jace and Derek. Everything else belongs to Stephanie Meyer.**

**A/N: hello all, thanks to all those who left me a review. So here is the first chapter I promised before Christmas. The next chapter is half written so should be posted on the weekend. Also this chapter is the longest. Love you guys keep leaving me feedback it makes my day, punkwerewolf**

**Chapter Nine: Whose Wedding Is It Anyway?**

When I had first moved to La Push, I had never even dreamed that I would find someone who would actually make life a little bit more bearable. But despite the gloomy depressing nature of the weather, I found my light in the dark in Jacob Black.

Dad had been taking Jace into jobs in Forks, leaving me all alone in our house for the week following my date with Jacob and every single time I found myself lonely I would pick up the phone or he would miraculously appear on my doorstep. Jace had just about had a heart attack the first day he returned home and found the two of us throwing cookie batter at each other in the kitchen. But with Jacob even stupid things like this entertained us.

A phone call on Monday heralded his entrance to the house. The two of us crashing on the living room floor playing Mario Kart, coming first in every race which I didn't exactly think was fair.

Tuesday afternoon resulted in a spontaneous visit, the day was actually half decent so we drove out to First Beach and walked around laughing and goofing around until it was no longer light enough for us to stay outside.

Wednesday morning was a completely random meeting in La Push, I'd been walking around not paying any attention when two large warms hands had picked me up and swung me around. So I spent all day hanging around with Jacob, Quil and Embry. I liked his friends; they made me feel like a complete insider. Plus the embarrassing stories they told me about Jake that caused him to mutter things to himself was way too cute.

By late Thursday afternoon, Dad left to go watch sport at someone's place with a couple of his friends and a few beers. So Jace and I decided that we were going to set up in the lounge room and watch movies and order pizza. Just as Jace was leafing through the menu in the kitchen, Jacob appeared at the front door. Jace was peeved for like half an hour while we waited for our pizza's to arrive, after conveniently remembering how much Jacob ate I made Jace order twice as much as he was going to. Once everything arrived the pizza arrived Jace and Jacob actually fell into a pretty easy conversation, the three of us spreading out on the lounge while we watched movies until Dad finally came home and conveniently suggested Jacob head back home to check in on Billy.

Friday I was hoping that Jacob would just turn up after Jace and Dad left for their weekend fishing trip, but two hours after complete silence from him. I had abandoned all hope that he would miraculously turn up so as I turned the music up on my stereo I leaned across my bed and grabbed my phone. Dialling Jake's number in an attempt to quell my sudden dependence on him. He answered on the last ring before I told myself I was going to hang up and automatically drove over so that we could hand out. Friday night consisted of the two of us lying on my bed, talking and listening to music before falling asleep.

It was as I woke up to a warmth pressed up against my back early on Saturday morning that I realised I had become really attached to Jacob Black and the joy he brought my life. No matter my bad mood or the storm clouds looming he could always make me happy. Although the snoring that was now reverberating through my ear drums kind of put a damper on that happiness right about now.

My gaze flicked to the clock, the red numbers clearing taunting me with the 4:39am blinking at me. I couldn't go back to sleep with him snoring like this and I definitely couldn't get up due to the arm draped across my waist.

I rolled over but I couldn't stop the giggle that bubbled from my lips as I caught sight of the peaceful look on his sleeping face. He looked every bit the innocent as he slept but no sooner had the thought crossed my mind that another ferocious snore left his lips.

"Jacob..."

No response. So I decided maybe a whisper wasn't enough to wake him.

"Jacob..." My voice was a little louder this time and the only sign that he heard me was another thunderous snore. So I resorted to shaking him a little. No response still, could this guy sleep through a hurricane?

I huffed slightly, realising I really had no way of getting up unless I could wake the sleeping god beside me. I summoned up all my strength and pushed him back by applying force to his chest. Although I probably should have noticed how close to the edge he was as he toppled over the end of my bed and collided onto the floor.

"Ouch..."

His sleepy admission came with a groan, as I leaned over the side of the bed to check the damage. "I am so sorry, I didn't realise that you would fall off..."

I watched as he rubbed the back of his head before he collapsed back on the bed. I realised I really probably should have thought before I pushed him off the bed but now that he was awake at least I didn't have to hear him snore any longer.

"You snore..."

His chuckle was broken off with a yawn, his gaze searching for the clock before flopping back on a couple of pillows while I curled up beside him.

"Sure, Sure..."

"You do, it was like a freight train in my ear. Plus I feel like I was held down by a space heater or something..."

This earned me another chuckle before he flicked me on the nose and pulled me closer to him.

"Sorry Mels...It's just a Jacob thing."

I rolled my eyes dramatically as we lay staring at each other in the early hours of the morning. I could feel myself slowly starting to fall asleep again but every time I deemed to close my eyes Jacob would poke me rudely on my nose once more.

Sighing I realised if I didn't talk I was going to fall asleep and every time I tried to go back to sleep Jacob used some new ploy to keep me awake.

"So what are your plans for today?"

"Mel...I have to go to this thing this afternoon. It's the reason I came back."

"What is it?"

"My best friend's wedding..."

"Shouldn't you be going to a Bachelor Party then? I was pretty sure that you guys would use anything as an excuse for a party."

"It's not someone from La Push, she lives in Forks. She's marrying this...guy that I can't stand. But I have to go to it..."

She...? I knew he was hoping that I hadn't heard the hurt tone in his voice when he talked of her and it was as he stared out at the window I drew myself up to a seated position.

Jacob sat up at that point, looking over at the clock before looking back towards me. "I'd better go, I'll see you tomorrow." He leaned over and pressed a kiss to my forehead before he slipped out of my dark room and out into the house. I heard the front door slam as I threw myself back on my bed.

I missed him. But he was lying to me about something.

* * *

I knew I was acting like a jealous girlfriend. Hell I wasn't even his girlfriend but the nagging feeling in the back of my head kept telling me there was more to Jacob attending this wedding than what he told me.

I had been thinking about it all morning. As I showered, ate breakfast and cleaned my room; the nagging voice told me I needed to figure out what was behind all of this. So I found myself pacing in front of the phone my doubts ebbing and flowing as I wondered if I could really go through with it.

Should I investigate?

What would I find if I did?

He was keeping stuff from me and I was keeping stuff from him. But I couldn't get over the voice in my head that kept telling me that whoever was getting married meant more to him than he let on.

I cursed under my breath before grabbing the phone and angrily punching the number in that was slowly becoming familiar to me.

"_Hello?"_

"Hey Mr Black..."

"_Mel?" _The husky voice of Jacob's father registered my voice even as I regretted ringing him.

"Yeah it's me..."

"_Jacob isn't here right now. He is at Bella's wedding, didn't he tell you?"_

I felt childish and petty as I posed my next question. Wondering what the hell Billy thought of me even as I spoke.

"Yeah he did, I was kind of hoping you could give me Embry's number. I've got a couple of things I want to ask him."

Mainly who was Bella and what had occurred between her and Jacob.

* * *

Embry Call. The guy knew exactly how to make a girl laugh.

Especially when the one person she thought was her friend was lying straight to her face.

Embry had been pretty surprised when I had called him and had insisted that we needed to 'bond'. I had assured him that he could just tell me over the phone but half an hour later here we sat on the lounge in my house. With Embry Call spilling his guts about everything he knew about Bella.

"Bella Swan pretty much took Jake's balls and stuffed them in her purse; guy was a wreck for weeks after she left him for Cullen."

"So they dated?"

If they dated it would make sense why he hadn't mentioned her, especially if he still loved her.

"More in his mind than anything else... Cullen wracked off somewhere a year ago and Bella used Jacob as a distraction. Went to the movies with her and a guy from Forks and they spent heaps of time together here."

So they didn't date. But I was pretty sure Jake still loved her.

"Are they still friends?"

"I don't know. Jacob and Cullen were fighting over her for a while, trying to mark each other's territory but Bella chose Cullen and when they sent out wedding invitations at the start of summer Jacob flipped and left La Push."

So that's where he had been.

"Why did he come back?"

"I think he thought if he came back he could break up the wedding... you know object during the ceremony. But lately I don't think he is going to do that."

"He still went, Embry." I couldn't really hide the hurt in my voice. I realised I cared about Jacob more than anyone and the thought alone scared me but if he still had feelings for Bella I was going to end up heart broken.

"Yeah but I think he went for some closure. He realised that Bella really isn't the one for him...Just took a while for it to get through his thick head."

"Why would he go to get closure? Surely watching a girl you thought you loved get married to someone who isn't you isn't healthy?"

"I'm not good at this girly stuff, are you sure you don't want me to go find Leah?"

He was teasing me and as I looked up to catch the smirk on his lips I shook my head trying to suppress my own grin.

"She hates me Em..."

"She hates everyone." He spoke with such nonchalance that I couldn't help but laugh while Embry ruffled my hair from the seat beside me. "Mel, I can't say why he would or wouldn't go. But the thing is he went and I'm sure he will tell you when he is ready...Jacob has been pretty depressed since the whole incident but around you he actually is himself again. You are good for him and if he doesn't realise it I'll woo you myself." He finished his gleaming wisdom with a waggle of his eyebrows making me laugh again before hugging him.

"Thanks Em..."

"Aw shucks Mel, anytime. I can dispense my wisdom if you invite me over more and I can corrupt you."

* * *

Embry left dead on five o'clock mumbling something about having to go meet the guys and that he was going to smell like wet dog for a week. I had bid the ray of sunshine in my rather dull day goodbye before I noticed my brother and father pull into the driveway.

"Did you miss me, favourite sister of mine?" Jace slipped out of the car and made his way towards me as Dad parked the car in the shed and locked the door before joining us on the porch.

"I thought you two weren't coming back until tomorrow?"

"Storm's coming in. No point staying out there..."

With that admission Dad trundled into the house while Jace followed him with their bag. I cast my gaze to the horizon noticing the foreboding black clouds hanging overhead. A shiver ran down the length of my spine as I stood out on the porch taking in my surroundings before the rain started to cascade down to the earth.

For some reason, rain had always comforted me. But today something was nagging at the back of my mind. Maybe it was the fact that Jacob had been keeping things from me or that Embry had indulged in my jealous rambling.

"Mel...come inside."

My father's voice broke me out of my thoughts, I took one last look out into the horizon before going inside but I couldn't help but wonder if I was getting too attached to my life here.

* * *

After Dad had cooked what little fish he and my brother had caught on their fishing trip we had stayed curled up on the couch together watching a movie until the storm knocked the power out. Dad strategically placed candles on the second floor in the bathroom and our bedrooms before telling us we were better off going to bed rather than staying up to hear the rain hitting the roof.

After showering I had jumped into bed, falling asleep to the sound of thunder rumbling in the distance and the rain colliding with my window.

I woke up to a strange noise, blinking rapidly in the darkness as I tried to figure out what had woken me.

When the scratching sound came again I looked to the window and a scream caught in my throat. I threw the blankets back from my body before running to the window and opening it, the soaked figure stepping into my room with my assistance.

"What happened?"

"Can I stay here tonight...?"

His voice sounded strained, even as he stood at my window shivering as his gaze searched for mine. It was then I realised Jacob Black was crying.


	11. Chapter 10:The Aftermath of Wedded Bliss

**Disclaimer: As always I don't own Twilight, Stephanie Meyer does. I however own Mel, Jace and Derek.**

**A/N: Merry Christmas!!!!!!! Here is an early christmas present for all of my readers. It's what a lot of you have been waiting for. As always thanks for the review and feedback you have made my week. So what's everyone up to for the holidays? I'm staying in my home town and will probably write much of the next chapter of this when everyone is singing after too much to drink tomorrow night. Leave me a review as a Christmas present and look for chapter eleven in the last week of 2010. Love you all and hope your Christmas is awesome, punkwerewolf**

**Chapter Ten: The Aftermath of Wedded Bliss**

"Jace..."

I knocked on my brother's door again for what seemed like the twentieth time as I tried to wake him up. I'm sure the guy could sleep through a hurricane and be completely oblivious to the devastation the next morning. As I pounded my fist on the door once more I heard a crash come from inside and the sleepy timber of my brother cursing whatever he had knocked over on his way to the door. The door swung open and Jace grunted at me as he shielded his eyes from the light in the hallway.

"Can I borrow some clothes?"

"Huh?"

"Clothes, give me a shirt and a pair of sweats..."

Jace stood staring at me for a few minutes, confusion flitting across his features before he finally complied with my request and disappeared into his darkened room before returning with a handful of clothes. I noticed he had closed his eyes again in an attempt to block out the light so he could fall straight back to sleep as soon as his head hit the pillow.

"Night..." He grunted before throwing the clothes in my hand and slamming the door in my face. I rolled my eyes before trudging back down the hall to my room, pushing open my door with a sigh.

Jacob was still sitting where I had left him. Staring down at the carpet as his shoulders shook every now and then. I noticed that the blanket I had draped around his shoulders before I left was now sitting in his lap. At that moment all I wanted to do was draw him into an embrace until the sadness in his gaze disappeared.

His shoulders shook every couple of minutes and I realised even though he always looked older than me right now he looked so young and so vulnerable.

"Here... I dunno if they'll fit but I'll go get a couple of blankets while you change." I broke the silence between us, placing the clothes on the bed beside him and turning to give him some privacy so he could get out of his wet clothes.

"Mel?" His hand suddenly came into contact with my skin, his fingers curling around my wrist in an attempt to stop my retreat from the room. I turned back around to glance at him, my breath catching in my throat as his gaze locked with mine for the first time since he had snuck in my window. "Thank you..."

With those words of gratitude I knew he was thanking me for a lot more than a pair of clothes. He was thanking me for letting him in and for being there for him when he needed me.

I nodded solemnly forcing myself to smile a little as his hand dropped from my arm and inspecting the clothes I left on the bed for him. I drew in a deep breath as I headed out into the hallway, closing my door quietly as I padded down the darkness to the cupboard and riffling through the overflowing shelves for a couple of blankets.

As I clutched a blanket to my chest I found myself wondering what had really happened for Jacob to turn up at my window in the middle of the night. Crying. Over the past couple of weeks I had started to picture Jacob as the knight in shining armour that was saving me from leading a very dull and dreary existence while I fritted away my exile in La Push. To see him show such vulnerability made my heart clench painfully inside my chest.

What had happened with Bella?

Had she rejected him?

Why had he decided that instead of going home and curling up in his own bed that he needed to stay here?

I shook my head in an attempt to banish the thoughts as I grabbed another couple of blankets from the shelves and silently sneaking back to the door of my room. I knocked silently before venturing back into the room, noticing that Jacob had turned on my desk lamp while he got dressed. He was still sitting on the end of my bed, but he had thankfully taken his soaked clothes off and now looked a whole lot warmer in my brother's sweats. Although I couldn't help but notice that he had left the shirt discarded, not that I was complaining about that.

I stood watching him from the door, wondering what I should do. I didn't know if I should set him up in my bed and go and sleep in the guest room or stay and listen to him talk.

His gaze floated from the floor to catch mine and the sadness that lurked there made my heart clench painfully in my chest. I stepped into my room, shutting the door silently behind me before making my way to my bed. I placed the blankets alongside of Jacob while I took a seat beside him. My fingers itched to touch him in some lame attempt to assure myself that he was okay. I noticed his hand resting upwards on his knee so I automatically took the chance to entwine our fingers. The gesture was so familiar but at the same time it wasn't enough.

"What happened, Jake?"

No sooner had the question come out of my mouth; he turned to face me and his head collapsed onto my shoulder. My arms slipped around his frame as I felt him shaking once more. I didn't know what else to do but to stay with him and hold him until he needed to talk. I had very little experience with men who cried but with Jacob it felt effortless. I knew that he trusted me enough to show how vulnerable he was right now and for that I was thankful.

While we sat in silence, I realised that something terrible must have happened at Bella's wedding. But I knew that trying to get him to talk about it when he wasn't ready was just going to lead to more problems.

Moments seemed to drag into one another and at one point I thought I was going to have to call in some back up to help Jacob deal. But no sooner had the thought crossed my mind, Jacob extracted himself from my arms and returned to sitting silently beside me. I shivered at the loss of his heat before his fingers entwined with mine once more.

"I thought it would be different now that I've...but she made it pretty clear to me even though I'd..." With every pause I could tell he was hiding something from me, his gaze would shift from our clasped hands to my window where the rain was still falling outside. "She doesn't even want to talk to me anymore and she is going through with it. She wouldn't even hear me out...I told her about you and that I didn't... anymore." When he paused this time his gaze turned to mine, the sadness that had been there earlier faded to something else as he watched me. "I don't want her to throw her life away and she told me it was none of my business. I know that but I was the one that stayed with her when he abandoned her. I just wanted one thing from her and she just left. Our friendship meant nothing to her if she couldn't just do this."

When silence descended over the two of us, his gaze floated to our hands once more as his thumb traced patterns over the back of my hand. He was less tense than when he had first climbed into the window but I could tell there was still more to it.

"Bella did this to you?"

His head swivelled around as his gaze searched my face in an attempt to see whether or not he had just imagined her name leaving my lips.

"How...? I mean..."

I cut him off with a squeeze of his hand, chewing my lip as I tried to figure out a way to answer him without giving away how paranoid I had become. Although if I told him the whole truth it would probably hurt his feelings that I hadn't told him but if I lied I was as good as this Bella person.

I decided that the truth hurts but it was better than lying to someone I cared about. I was already hiding a lot of my life from him and somehow adding another thing to the list made me feel even guiltier.

"When you left...I rang Embry. He came and kept me entertained this afternoon. He told me a little bit about Bella."

"Oh..." His voice was strained as he spoke and I felt guilty all over again.

"You seemed weird when you left..."

Jacob nodded as his gaze went back to rest on our joined hands. I knew he was angry; his shoulders had tensed slightly since I spoke.

"Jake, I don't want you to be angry at me. I was worried about you."

"Why were you worried about me?"

His question seemed simple enough but for the life of me I couldn't think of anything else to say. How could I explain what I felt around him? How could I even begin to understand what it was that drew me to him let alone tell him about it?

"I thought it was obvious..."

I was nervous as I planned out my answer. He had been hurt by the one girl he had loved and I was about to take a step that would either ruin our friendship or turn it into something else.

"I care about you Jake. I half expected to be isolated here; all I wanted to do when I first got here was to forget why I was here and get it over with before I could leave for college. But it changed when my car broke down on the side of the road..."

He was staring at me. And for some reason I couldn't have stopped talking even if I had of tried.

"You've been here every day and the days you aren't here are like the moon has been pulled out of the sky. You are so warm and kind and funny, you just have this indescribable personality that draws people in. I thought I would hate La Push, but everything about you has made that conclusion crumble."

He went to cut in but I shook my head, I needed to get this off my chest while we were both sitting here. Or I would never have the courage to do it again.

"There's stuff you don't know about me but there's a whole other side of you I don't know anything about. So maybe if you even like me a quarter of how I like you..."

I never got the chance to finish what I needed to say, as a result of all coherent thought leaving me when the warmth of Jacob's lips captured mine in a kiss.


	12. Chapter 11: Chew Me Up and Spit Me Out

**Disclaimer: Twilight is owned by Stephanie Meyer. I own Mel, Jace and their dad.**

**A/N: Happy New Year!!! And here is the next chapter! I should be able to update next weekend again so look out for it. Thanks to all those who reviewed, faved and added this story to their alert list. Here's to 2010, love punkwerewolf**

**

* * *

**

**Chapter Eleven: Chew Me Up and Spit Me Out**

Being with Jacob Black was like the stars guiding you home in the dead of night. He made me feel a thousand things that I had previously never known existed and I knew I would never get tired of his presence in my life.

But the night after Bella Swan's wedding changed everything between us.

The rain was still pouring outside and the low rumble of thunder in the distance broke the monotonous sound of another rainy night in La Push. But within the darkness of my room our friendship had taken a dramatic turn. And I wasn't sure whether or not this was a good thing or a bad thing.

After the shock of his kiss wore off, I shifted so I was facing him and he mirrored my movement. We couldn't go back from here, I knew I had crossed a line and so did he, and now we had to try and talk about it.

I was nervous and terrified that I had lost the only comfort I knew in my exile. Losing Jacob as a friend, I'm sure would quite possibly change my life but having something more? I couldn't fathom the thought of why he would even want to contemplate that possibility.

"You have no idea how long I have wanted to do that for..."

His voice broke the silence that had descended upon us and effectively broke my thoughts off from how lonely I was going to be if he regretted kissing me.

"You have no idea how long I've been thinking about that. Probably since the day you bumped your head when you were fixing my Dad's car..." I knew he hadn't expected it as his beaming smile shone through the darkness and much like every other time he smiled it was contagious. And even though a weird tension still hung between us, the ever present familiarity that had haunted our friendship from the beginning still hung in the air.

"Mel. I wanted to do that and I have no regrets whatsoever."

"Why do I have the feeling there is going to be a big 'but' there?"

I was chewing on my lip as my nerves gnawed in the pit of my stomach. Every conversation that started like that was doomed to failure. I knew that from both personal experience and from watching far too much television.

He chuckled and with that rich sound my nervousness dissipated a little.

"Nothing like that, Mels..." Jacob paused as his hand searched for mine, his thumb running patterns over the back of my hand before resting on the pulse at my wrist. I felt like he needed to tell me something but something else was holding him back. "I know that this seems weird and at first it was for me too. But I've spent every day here this past week and when my entire world was falling down around me you were the first person that came to mind. I don't really want to go back to the 'friend zone'..."

He was in the friend zone? That was definitely news to me.

"I've kept parts of my life from you and you've kept parts of your life before you moved here away from me but I'm willing to share everything with you if you just give me one chance." Jacob finished as his gaze searched mine, a hint of nerves and something I couldn't quite put my finger on. He had laid out what he wanted from me clearly enough and had shown me the vulnerability he normally kept hidden.

To reject him now would destroy even the tiniest fragment of our friendship and after the day he had obviously had I didn't want to cause him anymore pain.

"One chance, huh?" I found my voice as my gaze lingered on his thumb caressing my pulse, a smile evident on my lips as I found myself nodding. I couldn't deny that I wanted this. We both deserved to be happy. "Don't blow it Black..."

Jacob's face transformed into one of pure joy and before I could even fathom what he was doing his lips were reacquainting themselves with mine. Another crack of thunder drew us apart and a yawn on my part settled our argument about whether or not to stay up or go to sleep. So after kissing my on the forehead, Jacob tucked me into bed and then sprawled himself out on top of the covers beside me. Soon enough his eyelids were growing heavy and I found myself slowly falling to sleep but a thought crept up on me as I was hovering between asleep and awake.

I was now dating Jacob Black. And despite all of the secrets we still held this seemed...right.

* * *

"Mel?" Dad's voice broke me from my staring competition with the television; I craned my neck to see what he wanted before finally shifting so I was facing him in the hallway. His forehead was scrunched and he was rubbing his temples in what looked like an attempt to get rid of a migraine and it was then that a shiver of fear ran down my spine. Had Dad found out that Jacob spent the night last night? "Your mother is on the phone."

Oh...Oh! This had nothing to do with my boyfriend who had skilfully snuck back out of my bedroom window last night promising to be back sometime this afternoon so we could let my Dad know. But I had not expected this.

My mother had always been aloof and considering I had been here for nearly three weeks it seemed strange that suddenly she needed to check up on me. Maybe she was getting a nose job and needed to make sure I was the right blood type in case of complications?

"Okay..." I finally summed up enough courage to pry myself from the lounge and made my way towards the hallway. Dad handed me the phone with a roll of his eyes before disappearing into the next room so he could discreetly listen in and hopefully save me from a lecture. "Hey Mum..."

"_Melanie. How are you? How are you settling in?"_ Her voice tinkled even through the phone, I winced as I tried to figure out how to talk to her about how I was already settled in. I had friends, a boyfriend and I was happier than I had been since my mother had moved us away from La Push in the first place.

"I'm good...How are you? Jace came back to La Push so I've been spending some time with him."

I sounded stupid. I sounded like I was talking to a stranger rather than my mother. I wasn't even sure how to broach the subject of my brother considering how well their relationship had transpired in the last few years.

"_I thought your brother was still abroad."_ Her voice was chastising. Her distaste of his choice in lifestyle was still clear and had been clear since he had dropped out of university and travelled for the last twelve months. Jace had always been ambivalent to her hatred but I noticed that he often tensed whenever her name came up in conversation.

"He arrived here a couple of days after I did. He looks good, Mum."

She ignored any further talk about her first born and launched into another lecture about how it was important for me to do well in my last year of high school so that I could get into a good University. _"So what about friends...? I'm sure you have made your mother proud and become quite the social butterfly in Forks, I'm sure it's hard on you not seeing them all the time but it will get better when school starts..." _I knew this was coming, she hated La Push. She hated the Quileute heritage that surrounded us and she would certainly hate the fact that I was dating Jacob.

"I have a couple of friends, but they don't live in Forks. They live in La Push. Actually my best friend..."

"The Indians...?" I could practically hear the disgust in her voice and I bit back a retort as I waited for her to continue. "Oh...I'm sure they are nice..."

"Yeah they are..." I decided telling her about Jacob was probably just going to make her angrier and leaving it until I actually knew if we were going to last wasn't going to hurt anyone. "School starts in a couple of weeks."

"Yeah I know." That was her only reply and I could feel the divide that defined our mother-daughter relationship returning. "How are you getting in to Forks?"

I rolled my eyes, all I really wanted to do was to get off the phone and return to the lounge and pretend this conversation had never happened but she was insistent on trying to have a conversation with me."Dad got me a car..."

"He did?"

"Yeah..."

"Did your father set you up to see a therapist?"

"Yeah Mum."

"Good. No more dreams?"

"No." I lied. Telling her the truth had got me into all sorts of trouble in California and I had learnt my lesson. I knew deep down that if I said I was still having the dreams the next stop for me would be a 'reform school'. Or mental asylum whichever was cheaper and further away from her.

"Good. I'll talk to you soon. Bye honey."

I was about to say something else but the dial tone signalled the end of our conversation. I returned the phone to its place and caught sight of my Dad as he came towards me.

"You okay, Mels?"

I nodded silently as he pulled me into a hug in some attempt to banish the bad mood my mother always managed to put me in. We stood there for a moment before Jace came barrelling down the stairs and spotted us.

"Come on, don't look so doom and gloom. Your lover boy is crossing the yard so cheer up..."


	13. Chapter 12: Here Comes Trouble

**Disclaimer: I own Mel, Derek and Jase. Everything else belongs to Stephanie Meyer.**

**A/N: Hell my lovelies! Welcome to 2010! Hope everyone's new year was great. Mine has been really busy which is why this has been so late in coming. So enjoy. I go back to University in a couple of weeks so updates will probably be a bit slow. But the next chapter is nearly completely written so look for it soon. Hope you all are sticking with me and thanks for all the wonderful reviews and messages. love you all punk**

**Chapter Twelve: Here Comes Trouble**

As soon as the words left Jace's mouth I was already on my way towards the front door, sprinting across the yard to hurl myself at Jacob. His hands came to rest on my hips as he caught me, chuckling in my ear as the two of us basked in the newness of our relationship.

"Good morning to you too...Don't tell me you missed me since I crawled back out of your window at dawn?"

I tried to muster up a serious expression as I pulled back out of his embrace, my hands resting against his chest while I scrunched my nose up. "Well when you put it that way..."

"Mel..." He leaned down in that instant to press his lips to mine, his gaze sparkling with mischief and something that I couldn't quite discern. "I'm glad you missed me."

I blushed as I stepped out of his arms walking a little way towards the house before Jacob gripped my wrist. I turned to face him with a perplexed expression drawn across my features. "Grab a jacket and then meet me back out here. I'm kidnapping you for the day."

Kidnapping me? Okay. I'd go with it.

His hand slipped from my wrist and I was soon face to face with my brother as I grabbed my jacket and phone from the kitchen. I rolled my eyes as he blocked my exit, folding my arms across my chest as I waited for the inquisition.

"Where are you going Melanie?"

"For your information I'm going somewhere with Jacob..."

"I know that stupid, I meant where are you going with him?" His eye roll and psychotic overly-protective brother show was stopped when our father clipped him up the back of the head with his hand.

"Leave her alone, Jason. Be back before 11, Mel."

Jace spluttered as he sought for some reason to make me stay home but I just wedged between them, kissing my Dad on the cheek before slipping out the front door and back across the lawn towards the Rabbit.

"Let the kidnapping begin."

* * *

The drive along the back roads of La Push was spent in silence, seeing as Jacob refused to tell me anything about where we were going insisting that a kidnap victim didn't need to know where they were being kept. But when the tiny red house came into sight and I could clearly make out the figure of Billy Black sitting on the porch I knew that Jacob's master plan had just been foiled.

"Don't tell me Billy is your accomplice? He is friends with the chief of police, he will rat you out the minute Chief Swan asks if he knows about my whereabouts." I was teasing Jacob as I opened the door and slipped out of the car, making my way over towards Billy without waiting for Jacob to attach himself to my hip.

"Hey Mr Black..." Jacob's father tilted his head at me as a chuckle rumbled through his frame, his gaze leaving mine to trail where Jacob was now attached to my side.

"What's with the formalities, Melanie? Everyone calls me Billy and if you start spending as much time here as Jacob's been spending at your house I expect a hug when you arrive." He chuckled as he saw my expression, giving me the trade mark Black smirk before motioning for the two of us to go inside. "You kids better scat, you are cramping my style. Can't have Charlie pick me up when I'm hanging out with you two, it's bad for my reputation."

I bent down to give him a hug, as per his request, before opening the front door and stepping into the Black's living room. Pausing once I reached it so that Jacob could show me what we were doing.

"And Jacob...?"

I could hear Billy halting Jacob from running in after me and I didn't know if I really wanted to hear what he had to say to his son.

"I expect you to be on your best behaviour today, if I come home and Melanie looks like you have been torturing her I won't be your alibi."

It was then I dissolved into laughter and Jacob snorted at his father's assurance before joining me inside just as Charlie Swan's police cruiser pulled into the driveway.

* * *

Once Charlie and Billy had bundled themselves into the police cruiser with a promise of being back sometime after dinner, Jacob showed me around the house. I stopped at one point to glance over the picture of a chubby cheeked toddler Jacob with two pretty little girls flanking him on either side. I couldn't help the smile that lit up my features as I felt Jacob wrap his arms around me from behind.

"You were so cute...look at your dimples."

"And I'm not cute now?"

"I was thinking more along the lines of devilishly handsome?"

"Such the flatterer..." His lips met the side of my neck and I couldn't help the shiver that ran up my spine at the contact. I found myself lost in that sensation for a moment before slipping from his grip so that I could shift his attention to something else rather than making out.

"Are these your sisters?"

"Yeah, that's Rebecca and Rachel. You'll meet them at Christmas."

I'll meet them at Christmas. Christmas was months away and he planned on us staying together that long. It made me whirl around to face him and I couldn't help the tingle that had spread through my body at the prospect.

"Come on, I'll show you around..."

* * *

For most of the morning Jacob dragged me around the house, skittering away from embarrassing photos of him as a kid before slipping passed his room and into the kitchen. I was a little disappointed that he didn't feel like I was ready to see his room, considering how much time he spent in mine, but his kiss just outside his door assured me that I would get the grand tour soon enough.

Now after I had cooked the two of us lunch, we were sitting on the steps out on the porch with our knees touching and our hands linked. Out here it was peaceful. Just the sound of rain beating down on the roof and the steady flow of water that ran past the house. But the two of us hadn't been taking in the serenity; Jacob had started to inquire about my life before I came to La Push.

I had just finished telling him about one of the few memories I had of La Push before my parents' divorce but I knew there was something else he really wanted to know. I squeezed his hand in an assurance that whatever he asked of me I would kindly give him the answer. Hell I'm pretty sure if he asked for a kidney right now I'd be lining up to give it to him in a heartbeat.

"Why did you really move back? And don't say it's because you wanted to spend quality time with your father..."

I scrunched my nose up as I shifted so I could look out at the rain soaked area around the Black house, a voice hammering inside my skull which reminded me that I shouldn't be telling him one of my deep dark secrets.

What did I have to lose?

He barely knew me.

If after today he thought I was weird I would never have to see him again unless I chose.

"Last summer I had a car accident..." I paused as I felt him tense beside me, but once I was sure he was still listening I continued. "I rolled it and hit my head. I don't really remember a lot of what happened after it but when I was lying in hospital I had this dream that a wolf came out of nowhere and pulled me from the wreck. When I woke up the only real injury I had was the huge bump on my head and at first I played off these weird dreams on that but weeks after the accident I was still dreaming about the wolf and each time I dreamt it was more real than the last."

This was where the story got weird and for the life of me I couldn't stop telling him whether I liked it or not.

"Every night I would dream about the wolf and for some reason I would wake up and feel like I hadn't slept at all. I would see a shadow out of the corner of my eye and I could swear it was my dream encroaching on reality. But it got to the point where I was so obsessed with the dreams that I wasn't sleeping so my grades were flaking and I spent half of junior year seeing shrinks and taking meds just so I could catch a bit of sleep so I could function."

"But even though some of the meds were working, I couldn't help the fact that I wanted to see the wolf. I was so used to its presence in my life and when things with my mother were bad he was always waiting for me. So I found a way to get around it; alcohol let me see him. I fell in with the wrong crowd, I started drinking and sneaking out and soon enough I got suspended from school and when my mother found out she blew up. Before I knew it the year was finished and Mum had bundled me up and here I am."

That was the truth of how I got here. Whether or not Jacob still wanted me in his life after finding out some of my sordid past I didn't know. But all my fears were alleviated when he leaned across and drew my chin up, his lips descending on mine for a brief moment.

"I knew you were trouble...Good thing I'm into that."


	14. Chapter 13: First Day Blues

**A/N: I own Mel and her family and this storyline. Sorry its taken so long for this chapter to get uploaded again, Fourteen should be finished tonight while I take a break from Essay Writing. Lets hope the power stays on long enough for me to get it finished xoxo**

**Chapter Thirteen: First Day Blues**

I cursed the sunlight that was filtering in through my window that had awoken me from my slumber.

I rolled over, dragging the doona with me and praying that if I just closed my eyes that I wouldn't have to get up and face the world today.

A knock resounded in my skull and Dad's voice floated across the empty space towards me. "Mel... I heard your alarm go off. Time to get up, I'm driving you to school in an hour."

I punched my pillow with an aggravated groan.

I didn't want to go to school. I didn't want to be the weird new kid.

Most of all I didn't want to have to explain myself.

Throwing the doona off, I sighed succumbing to my fate as I quickly showered, brushed my teeth and then stood in front of my closet wondering what I should wear.

I had no idea about anything right now. If I was going to school in La Push, I would have chucked a pair of jeans and a shirt on and called it a day. But with Forks I had no idea whether or not I would be ostracised for the type of jeans I wore or the shoes I chose. Schools were generally all the same, people judged you on appearance first and personality second. Considering the problems I had going around in my mind I really needed to make a half decent first impression.

Jace's scream broke me from my thoughts so I grabbed a pair of black jeans, a long sleeved black top and layered it with an emerald green shirt over the top. My hair was a stick straight and the only thing I could think of was to pull it up into a ponytail.

I quickly applied a layer of lip gloss, some eye shadow and mascara before deeming myself acceptable in the mirror. One last look around the room and I was ready to face the day, grabbing my phone and the backpack Dad had surprised me with yesterday and heading down the stairs into the kitchen.

"Morning Princess, about time you got up."

Jace's greeting was soon followed by a slap up the side of his head from my father as he went about preparing something half decent for me to eat for breakfast on my first day of school.

"Leave her alone Jason."

"Yeah Jason..." I mimicked as I sat down beside him, taking the time to childishly kick him in the shins under the table while I checked my phone. Screwing my nose up when I realised I had six new messages waiting for me.

'_Mel. Good luck today, we will be thinking of you. Mum and Michael.'_

'_Melanie! New school, good luck today and I will be ringing for the gossip tonight. Love Brit xoxo'_

'_Dearest Trouble, hope your new school doesn't cause you a headache and that the boys are cute, much love, Lia.'_

'_Trouble...Miss you and thinking of you on our first day of Senior year. Brian.'_

The last two messages made me laugh because I recognised them as soon as I saw them; the first being from Embry and the second from Jacob.

'_Melanie H. Hope you don't mind me hijacking Jake's phone to make this text but I know you love me more than him so I thought I'd make sure you know I'll be thinking of you sitting in the cold lonely class room in La Push wishing you were here to take away my boredom. Embry.'_

'_Mels. I don't really know what I can say to make this day any easier for you but know that I'm thinking of you as I'm stuck with Embry and Quil learning random facts that I'll never use. Don't be nervous, be yourself and I know everyone will love you. I'll swing by your house tonight to see how it went and I'll talk to you soon. Jake.'_

I broke out into a smile as I read through each one, kicking Jace once more when he snickered beside me before writing a quick message to each of my friends back home as well as Embry and Jacob.

I couldn't believe that Lia, Brit and Brian had remembered me today. It made the ache in my chest where their friendship rested burn a little at the thought and I tried not to let it show how much I missed them.

The three of us had grown up together in New York and hadn't really been separated for any great lengths at a time until my mother announced our move to Los Angeles. I could still remember the look on Lia's face as I sat beside her while I told them. She had been devastated, breaking down into tears and begging me not to go. She even tried to convince my mother to let me stay with her parents until I'd finished school. But that suggestion had gone over like a ton of bricks with my mother so I was forced to pack up my life and leave the only friends I had ever made behind.

When I moved I hadn't expected them to keep in touch like they did. Email's every week and text messages every couple of days, even when I was in such a dark place because of the dreams they managed to break me out for a few short moments. They had managed to catch a flight during one set of holidays to visit and since finding out I had moved to Washington they were already planning a road trip to come crash.

We had even been in talks over the summer to apply to university in Washington, rather than New York or Los Angeles where our respective families wanted us to go. I needed to make a bigger commitment to stay in touch and I knew placing the photos of the four of us around my room was the first step I needed to take in my new chance at a normal teenage life again.

I didn't know if Dad expected anyone in California to text me and wish me good luck today, but I hadn't. After the accident and the move, I'd turned into a complete introvert. The dreams haunted my days and all I wanted was to get away from it all so that I could have some hope of a normal life.

Dad roused me from my thoughts when he dropped a stack of pancakes between Jace and I, urging the two of us to dig in before he humbly excused himself to grab his stuff ready for work. Jace punched me in the arm before digging into breakfast.

After eating our breakfast in silence, I picked my bag up from the floor and walked the short distance to the front porch where Dad was waiting for me. Stopping when I felt my phone buzz in my pocket, reaching in and noticing I had one new message.

_'Good luck today, little sis...Knock them dead. Jason.'_

* * *

"Are you going to be okay?"

This was about the twentieth time Dad had asked me this question as we drove to Forks, his gaze flickering from the road to my hunched up figure in the passenger seat of his car.

"I'll be fine, Dad. Forks High is small in comparison to my last two schools. I'll manage..."

I think if I kept saying it enough I'd believe it.

"I'm walking you in..."

"Dad, you don't have to."

He let out an exasperated sigh as we pulled into the slowly filling car park of Forks High School. Turning to me as he shook his head, trying to figure out what he was going to say to me.

"Mel. The last year has been hard on you and I want to do this. I missed a lot of your firsts and for once let me do this, alright?"

I let out my own sigh, before grabbing my bag and moving to leave. "Come on then, old man, let's get this show on the road."

"Derek and Melanie Hargraves...?"

Dad motioned to us and pushed me into the principal's office with a final shove before following me in. I tried not to wince at the sound of the door shutting behind us as the man tilted his wire rimmed glasses to get a better look at his new student.

He turned his attention to my transcripts, shuffling through the pieces of paper before speaking once more.

"It is with pleasure I welcome you both to Forks High School...but I have a few questions before I hand you your class schedule and introduce you to some of your class mates."

I nodded mutely and I vaguely registered Dad talking to him for a while about facilities and classes and possible universities that would be willing to take me after my last year.

My thoughts flicking back to the last time I had been in this situation and the sense of doom that always accompanied the memories of my school in LA.

I was freaking out on the inside that I was going to make a bad impression.

I didn't want to make the same mistakes this year.

I just wanted to fit in for a few brief months and then start my life over.

"You transferred from a school in New York, then from Los Angeles to Forks..."

I realised he was talking to me and I vaguely registered the question before answering him with the truth.

"My mother got remarried. Michael's an actor so we packed up and headed out to California to support him in his career."

Dad muted a cough in his hand as he shifted uncomfortably beside me.

"What does this have to do with Melanie's education?"

The principal muttered an apology as he shuffled the slips of paper back into my personal file, before his gaze flicked up to catch my Dad's.

"We just like to know what kind of student's we have...She will fit in quite well here...I'll just find a map..." He shuffled around again, his glasses falling off his nose a couple of times as he puttered around the office and I turned to Dad with a stunned look on my face before I finally spoke up to stop him.

"There's no need, sir...I'm sure I'll be fine, I grew up in New York I think I can circumnavigate a school."

Dad ushered me out of the door after bidding my new principal goodbye and once the door had shut he whirled around to face me. A hint of fury evident in his gaze as he shook his head at me, his arms crossed over his chest in a show of strength.

"Melanie...I don't want to be back in this office. You need to behave here. I'm your last stop before you are sent to some reform school."

I gulped as I pushed some of the stray strands of hair from my face, my gaze flickering down to the linoleum floor as I let out a sigh.

"I know, Dad."

* * *

After collecting my schedule I headed across the small school to the room that was allocated for AP English. I really had no idea what to expect and for some reason that's what made me nervous. When I found the room, I was quickly ushered into the room by Mr Morgan who I handed the form that dubbed me as new.

"Class, this is Melanie Hargraves. She just transferred here from Los Angeles, California. Make her welcome on your own time as we are about to delve into the joys of Shakespeare."

I was thankful that the introduction had lasted only a few minutes before I took my seat at the back of the classroom, most people in the room seemed friendly enough and I think hearing that I was from California gave them some hope that I would be a ray of sunshine in this rather dull grey town.

Mr Morgan, who had obviously seen better days hummed about in the front of the class before prattling on about the joy of Shakespeare's tragedies.

A few moments later, a sheet of paper graced our desks which outlined our study load and assignments before Mr Morgan informed us that we would be studying Macbeth and Romeo and Juliet. I was kind of regretting signing up for this class already when I felt a tap on my shoulder from the blonde girl behind me.

"California? Why would you choose to move here? It's so grey..." She offered me her hand as she whispered her name. "I'm Nicole Richer..."

"Mel Hargraves." I know she knew it but it was courtesy as I took her hand before my gaze slipped back to Mr Morgan who was scribbling something about Shakespeare onto the board. "Dad lives in La Push, that's why I'm here."

"La Push! God I bet you know some of those fine Indians..." She fanned herself as I held in a giggle, before she smiled at me. "You stick with me, Mel Hargraves and you'll be fine."

Wow. I made a friend.

By the time English dispersed, Nicole had introduced me to her best friend Rose Jennings and I got the vague impression that they were hoping that their twosome would now become a triad. Nicole was an art freak, she could draw anything you named and she absolutely loved fashion while Rose was more down to earth who had her head stuffed in a romance novel between class. I had English, Journalism and Gym with both Nicole and Rose but I had to survive Calculus, World History and Biology by myself.

But as the day wore on I was slowly getting accustomed to both the layout of the school and the people in it. My lab partner in Biology was this tall guy by the name of Damien who cracked a joke about me looking more like a girl than him and after that we got along great. He was smart and charismatic and spent half the class pointing out the guys who batted for his team and mine. Through our conversations over a telescope and textbook, I discovered that he was good friends with both Nicole and Rose.

By the time lunch rolled around, Damien and I had spent most of our Calculus and Biology class getting to know one another and I felt pretty sure that the two of us were slowly becoming friends. When Damien slowly pulled me across campus to the cafeteria, we quickly collected and bought something for lunch before taking over their 'regular' table near one of the windows overlooking the oval. I managed to collapse into a chair beside Damien as he daintily picked through the salad he had ordered before we were interrupted by Nicole and Rose.

"We see you have met our resident fashion editor." Rose giggled as she flicked her brown hair over her shoulder before pinching the brownie from Damien's plate. "Now tell me all about what it's like to live in LA. Movie stars, musicians...god this place must be dreary compared to there."

I forced a smile, wondering what she really wanted me to say about my time in California. I had been more preoccupied by not going insane rather than the Movie stars and musicians that lived and lurked around me.

I was cut off from answering when a booming voice broke through the silence around us when two guys shuffled into the two spare seats at our table.

"Look here, looks like we have an even number..." The taller of the two guys, winked as he said this leaning over to offer me his hand before Nicole slapped him away. "This is Austin and that..."She motioned with her head to the blonde guy now inspecting what was actually on his plate. "Is my annoying cousin Shane. Guys, this is Mel Hargraves..."

Both Shane and Austin were athletes through and through, more concerned with the right kind of weather for surfing or football rather than whether or not they took Calculus or Trigonometry. But the six of us meshed well together; an eccentric blend of popularity, athleticism, intelligence and mystery.

Maybe this school wasn't going to be so bad.

Austin had seen me texting my Dad to come pick me up and had unceremoniously pried the phone from my hand.

"What are you doing, Austin?"

"Saving a damsel in distress...Look I'll drive you to your Dad's shop. My mum owns the coffee shop beside it, so it's not like it's out of my way." I couldn't help but contain the laugh that bubbled from my throat, realising that Austin was tripping over himself to be nice to me despite the fact that he had only met me a few hours earlier.

"Okay, seeing as you confiscated my phone I guess I'll take you up on that most glorious offer."

His beaming smile was different than Jacob but I felt some of the happiness that I felt with him when I was around Austin.

After reluctantly getting into his beaten up old truck, we drove into town blanketed in a comfortable air of conversation between us. We had just finished talking about whether or not to call his truck 'Beast' or 'Rusty' when we came to a stop outside my Dad's shop.

"Thanks for the ride, Austin. I'll see you tomorrow." I bid him goodbye as I slipped out of the passenger seat, closing the door and making my way towards the door before turning at the sound of the window creaking as it was rolled down.

"Sure you don't want to grab a bite to eat and we can continue this discussion?" He was beaming at me from the driver's seat and I shook my head. Jacob was waiting for me at home and I wanted to curl up on the lounge with him for the remainder of the afternoon.

"I have to check in with my Dad, or he will think some maniac abducted me. Thanks though..." With that I pushed the door open and left Austin out in brisk afternoon air in exchange for the warmth of my father's shop.

"Dad...I'm here..."

Dad swooped into the room like a hawk, smirking down at me. "Already getting lifts home from the Quarterback? I thought you only had eyes for Mr Black?"

"Mr Black, Dad really I don't think I'm Billy's type."

"Ha Ha, sarcasm is just a defence mechanism Melanie...How was your first day?"

I knew that the subtle subject change was looming around the corner.

"School was better than I thought, I made some friends so I won't have social issues to worry about and I actually like some of my classes so my grades seem to be in good enough hands."

"Good. I'm glad it wasn't as bad as you thought it would be. Now as a treat for your first day, I'm closing up early so I'll just grab my jacket and keys, you can lock the front door."

Once the front door was bolted and locked, I fumbled through the now dark shop to the back room where Dad was holding the back door open for me. I slipped out into the pouring rain and into his car while he finished locking the back door. He then traipsed over to the car and inserted himself behind the wheel with a shake of his head.

"So should we be expecting Jacob to make an appearance this afternoon...?"

I knew the question was simple enough and I couldn't help the smile that graced my lips at the mere mention of his name.

"Yeah, we do."


	15. Chapter 14: Basket Case

A/N: Hey all. Here's a new chapter. The next one I hope to have up over the weekend. This one isn't as good as I hoped it to be, I had trouble getting it to flow but hopefully you guys like it and let me know in reviews. It may or may not be edited once this story is finished, but that depends on my schedule I guess. Anyway two weeks in to my six week vacation and I'm loving being back with Mel. And for all those Jace lovers, he is coming back next chapter with much hilarity. Much love, punk

Edit: Realised my page breaks didn't work, so I've redone them. So sorry guys

**Chapter Fourteen: Basket Case**

"Did you play nice at school?"

"Ha ha very funny..." I greeted Jacob as he met me at the door to my Dad's car; the drizzle clung to his hair and clothes. He didn't even give me a chance to get out of the car before he swung me around into an embrace, his face buried into the crook of my shoulder.

"You do realise I haven't been gone that long, right?"

"Sure sure, just humour me okay?"

I found myself snuggling into his warmth, something that always surprised me since he had a bad habit of walking around half naked all the time. Although I have to admit I wasn't complaining too much.

"Don't you ever get cold, kid?" Dad's voice cut our reunion short, Jacob relinquishing his hold on me before urging me to stand under cover while he spoke to my father.

"Not really...I seem to run a bit hotter than normal."

"Yeah that would explain why you never wear a shirt..." My dad chuckled as he slunk back to his office to finish up some work leaving the two of us to our own devices.

Jacob shook his head, in a way that reminded me of a dog as we stepped into the warmth of the living room. I collapsed onto the lounge before Jacob dropped to the floor to sit with his back against my legs.

"So...how was your first day?"

I bent over a little to stare at him but even from upside down I couldn't help but smile at him.

"It was school, what more do you want me to say?"

* * *

That night, for the first night in a long time I had _the _dream.

I was in the woods, rain pattering down around me and I could feel the breeze as goose bumps ran up and down my arms. I was wearing my pyjama bottoms and the singlet I'd thrown on when I'd curled up in bed not too long ago and I was freezing.

A growl to the right garnered my attention and I could feel a smile break over my face as I my wolf bounded up to greet me. His head rubbing against my side and I was sure if he could he would have purred.

"_I haven't seen you for ages...I thought you might have forgotten all about me..."_ I admitted as I ran my fingers through his fur, sighing a little at the safe feeling that always came over me when the wolf was with me.

He kept nudging my hand with his head and I got the feeling that I was going to be hurtled back to the real world sooner rather than later.

"_Let me guess...We don't have much time..."_

I didn't want to say goodbye just yet. It might have seemed childish but I missed the nights that my wolf visited me.

"_You are right, darling Melanie. Did you think that moving was going to hide your presence from me?"_

His voice reverberated in my mind and as I turned towards the voice I felt a force push me backwards, my back hitting the tree even as I heard the wolf growling at my assailant in an effort to protect me.

"_I will see you soon, Melanie. Count the days until I have your blood on my hands..."_

I jolted awake, my heart thudding painfully against my chest and pain erupted along my hip. I pushed the blankets off of me as I swung out of bed and pulled my shirt up to investigate the area where the pain was emanating from. I flicked the light on as my gaze found an angry red welt that marked my hip.

I couldn't help the case of the shivers that erupted over my arms and I couldn't help but feel violently ill.

A crash of lightning lit up my room as I slumped back on the edge of my bed, my room descending in to darkness when the power went out. It was ominous and normally I wouldn't have been the least bit phased by the storm but I was scared.

I'd never been this afraid before.

I was afraid that I was actually losing my mind. I was afraid that whatever lurked in my dreams now could venture in to real life and to cause me actual harm.

His threat echoed in the cold of my room. And for some reason I couldn't shake off the fear that still shook my frame.

Things had been going so blissfully normal since I had been here and now it was back. And it was worse than ever before.

What the hell was I going to do?

* * *

"Are you okay? You're awfully quiet..."

I snuggled back into the blanket around my shoulders as I turned my gaze back from the ocean to Jacob. He had decided that to celebrate surviving my first week of school that he would take me out to First Beach. He hadn't counted on the fact that it was so cold that the only way to stop my teeth from chattering was to curl me up in a blanket as we sat silently watching the waves.

"Sorry, zoned out for a little bit..."

"Your Dad said you hadn't been sleeping..."

It was true. Since I'd woken up with the bruise on my hip I hadn't really been sleeping that well. The dream kept coming. I hadn't woken up with any more phantom bruises but whatever it was that had caused it loomed in the recesses of my dream. I dreaded going to bed each night and I knew that if the dream didn't go away I was going to burn out soon and I would be gone from La Push before I knew it. The fact that Jacob knew about my sleeping habits was kind of troubling. What else had my brother and father told him that he had neglected to tell me?

"Have you been checking up on me?" I couldn't help the tinge of accusation that crept into my tone, I had been snapping at my family all week.

"Not really, thought something had to be going on seeing as you fell asleep on the lounge with me yesterday and now you're staring off into space..."

I automatically felt guilty and my fingers sought his, a sigh escaping my lips as his heat warmed me a little.

"I really am sorry, Jake. I've been having nightmares again..."

Jacob tensed beside me, before he shifted so that he could provide me with a source of warmth so that I could talk.

"The dream about the wolf...? I thought you said the wolf didn't bother you." Jacob inquired and for the first time I got a hint of some underlying fear that quivered in his voice.

"There's more to it than just the wolf..." I didn't know if I could actually tell him about the bruise. I didn't want to give him any other reason to think I was nuts. I'd given him enough as it was.

He laced his fingers with mine while his other arm wrapped around my waist to drag me closer to him. I winced as his fingers skimmed over the bruise on my hip and I silently hoped that he hadn't heard of felt me tense.

However, as I was getting to know Jacob Black better I realised nothing got past him.

"What's wrong?"

I chewed my bottom lip for a moment before turning, the blanket dropping around my waist. A deep breath to calm myself was all that was needed before I pushed my shirt up enough for the bruise to be visible.

"Have you ever seen a dream do something like this...?"

His jaw was clenched and I could have sworn that I could hear him grinding his teeth. I decided that he'd seen enough and just as I was dragging my shirt back in to place, his warm hands halted my progress. One of his hands held my shirt where I had previously gripped it, while the fingers of his other hand skimmed over the welt on my hip.

The warmth from his fingers brought a shiver to my body and after standing before him while he investigated the mark on my body.

"Jake..." His name rolled off my tongue and surprisingly sounded more like a moan than a protest. "I'm freezing..."

His gaze locked with mine and he shook his head in what I assumed to be as an attempt to clear his thoughts. With a look of extreme effort he pried his hands from my hips and rearranged my shirt before pulling me into his warm embrace.

"Tell me what happened, Mel."

Wrapped up in the safety of his arms, I told Jacob everything I remembered from my dreams. Including a few I'd previously put to the back of my mind but as I spoke I couldn't fight the overwhelming fear that I was making myself look even more insane in his eyes.

"Do you think I should be carried off in a straight jacket now?"

He suddenly gripped my face in his hands, turning my head so that he could lock his gaze with my own. Anger flashing in his eyes before it was replaced by a sincerity I didn't know he could possess.

"Mel. I believe you, as hard as it sounds I believe you. One day I'll tell you something and I hope you can believe me too..." He was so serious I wasn't game enough to say anything or break eye contact with him until he closed the gap between us. His lips banishing all thoughts of nightmares and injuries I couldn't explain.

Jacob was safe. Every time I found myself doubting my sanity, Jake always seemed to know how to expel the thoughts before they overwhelmed me.

* * *

"Look, I know you think your Dad is going to ground you until middle age but this is the only way I am going to sleep tonight."

"It doesn't mean he will be okay with you sleeping here!"

"It's not like I'm going to be breaking any rules, I'm just sleeping."

Ugh! We had gone around in circles with this argument ever since we had arrived back within the confines of my house. We had been quite happy staying at First Beach until the familiar weather of La Push caused the two of us to return home. We had been soaked when we stepped across the threshold of my home. I slipped up the stairs to change into my pyjamas in an attempt to warm myself up while Jacob had changed into a pair of Jace's sweats which he had commandeered.

Pretty much as soon as I had collapsed back on to my bed and hadn't bothered to stifle my yawn, Jacob had started nagging me.

First it was that I needed to sleep.

Then it was that maybe I should call him if I woke up from a nightmare again.

And then finally he had decided that he would worry too much if he wasn't here and that he might be able to banish whatever was stalking in my dreams by curling up like a guard dog around me.

I wanted him too. I knew that it was going to cause more problems but maybe he would be able to fend off the dreams so that I could have one night where I wasn't afraid to close my eyes.

But staying here? Dad would kill him when he got home from Forks.

Who was I kidding? Jace would kill Jacob if he found him curled up in bed with me, no matter how many clothes either of us wore.

"What are you so worried about? We got away with it once before..."

Yeah but I didn't have to worry about my father walking in to check on me then.

"That was before I woke up screaming. Dad has been checking up on me every now and then and as much as you think you could blend in to the background, I think it will be hard for me to hide you under the bed..."

"Oh..."

I turned to face him for the first time in a little while, a shiver passing down my spine as he sat staring at his hands on the edge of my bed.

"Jake, I know you are worried but I'll be fine without you here. I have been all week."

He looked up at that, a frown creasing his features as he sighed in exasperation. "You don't get it. You haven't been fine all week; you've been falling asleep little by little every time I'm here. You need to sleep, recharge to tackle next week. If you have the dream I won't pester you about staying here again, but if you don't have it I'm going to continue to be here to protect you."

My own sigh filled the silence that streaked between us, the sound of rain hitting the roof and the sounds of our breathing mingled in the air.

I knew he wouldn't let this go. I'd seen the look when I had refused to go out when it was raining countless times.

I always caved.

"There's no fighting you on this. You won't let it go..."

"Mel, I don't want to have to lay awake tonight worrying about you. I'd prefer to be here, worrying about you where at least I can check up on you."

"If Dad doesn't kill you, you can stay...but on one condition...If you snore I get to smother you with a pillow."

A laugh bubbled from his lips and it was with that sound that I joined him on the edge of my bed while we waited for my family to approve of this stupid idea.

I was so dead.


	16. Chapter 15: Late Nights and Disco Girls

**A/N: Sorry for my lack of updates, but here is the next installment of Lone Howl. Brought to you by Amy Meredith's 'Late Nights'. It's an awesome song. This chapter has been a long time in the making but some wolf business is going to be going down very shortly. Thank you all for your lovely reviews over the last couple of months of my absence they have served to inspire me to write this chapter. The next one, now that I've been inspired, should probably be finished by Monday and will be posted as soon as I can get back to College. Let me know what you think, love love punk**

**Chapter Fifteen: Late Nights and Disco Girls**

"I have no idea how you convinced my Dad that it was a good idea for you to stay the night. Can anyone say no to you, Jacob?"

I was half way through cleaning my teeth when Jacob had bounced back up the stairs and flopped down on my bed, informing me that my father had agreed to his request. My surprise had been waved off by my half naked boyfriend as I finished getting ready for bed.

"Easy. I give good parent. Plus, I promised that I'd leave the door open and that your brother could patrol the halls and sneak in to ensure that we were keeping things strictly PG in here."

I giggled at the thought that Jace would be patrolling the halls like a warden of a prison. I could just imagine my brother with a flashlight in his hand as he checked up on the two of us to make sure that everything was still strictly PG between the two of us. I could even imagine Jace wielding the flashlight as a weapon if Jacob so much as laid a finger on me during the night.

"Are you coming to bed or do I have to carry you across the threshold or something?" Jacob's voice broke me from my thoughts as I finished tugging my hair into a ponytail and padded back to the warmth of my room. However, I found myself transfixed by the sight that greeted me as I paused in the doorway to drink in the sight of Jacob Black. Every time I saw him I wondered how I had gotten so lucky to have found him and it was with this thought that I decided I would memorise every line and contour of his body just in case I woke up tomorrow and it was all a dream.

Jacob patted the spot beside him as he rearranged the pillows so that the two of us could sleep without being too close. I sat beside him but just as he was about to reach out to me a howl drew his attention. His gaze flicked to the open window before he leapt from the bed to investigate the noise. It was the loudest and the closest I had ever heard the wolves that lurked in the forest, I'd never even seen one but my father assured me they were out there.

"Stay here..."

His order barely registered in my mind before he disappeared out the door and down the stairs. I blinked a couple of times before I frowned wondering what Jake had seen that had made him bolt from the room like that.

* * *

I woke up to the feel of someone's fingers brushing feather light caresses across my forehead, I tried to fall back to sleep and curl back in to the warmth of my bed when I heard him clear his throat.

"Hey, I didn't mean to wake you. When I came up you were already asleep and..." He trailed off as I snuggled into the warmth that surrounded him, my fingers searching for his in the darkness.

"So you decided to do the creepy stalker thing and watch me sleep?" I saw a flash of hurt cross his features and I leaned up to brush my lips across his cheek in way of an apology. "It was a joke Jake..."

"Have you had the dream yet...?" The change in topic came as he curled me closer to his body, his fingers tracing patterns over my forehead once more in an attempt to lull me back to sleep. I tried to fight the call to close my eyes because now that he was here again I didn't want to waste precious time sleeping.

"You would know if I had, but somehow I think you are going to frighten it off. Who in their right mind would want to fight you?"

He chuckled then but it was broken up by a yawn which in turn made me giggle. "Maybe we should say goodnight and we both go to sleep?"

Jacob nodded as he snuggled down beside me, his nose buried in to the crook of my shoulder as I let his warmth lull me to sleep for what I hoped would be the first of many nights together. As I felt the steadying of Jacob's heart against me I realised that I hadn't asked where he had gone earlier.

* * *

I felt like I was suffocating. I felt like my body was on fire and every time I tried to move to get away from the source I was pulled back towards it. A masculine groan broke me out of my struggle as my eyelids fluttered open to rest on the frown that was etched across Jacob's forehead.

"Stop moving woman..." He groaned again as he removed his arm from around me, putting a little distance between us as he yawned. I looked from him to the sun shining through my open window as I sat up.

"How are you not hot? I feel like I'm dying..." I leaned over to place my hand on his forehead and realised how hot he was. I mean he was always running a little hotter than normal but it was any wonder that I was feeling the heat. "Jake you are burning up..."

He swatted my hand away a little irritably, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes as he sat up to grab one of my wrists. "I'm fine Mel...Just running a little hotter this morning, maybe it has something to do with being curled up with you all night?"

I couldn't stop the blush that spread from my neck to my cheeks, trying desperately to avoid the heated gaze he had thrown me. "Yeah but..."

"Good morning people, I hope all limbs are where they should be...all clothes are still on and no coitus is being interrupted or contemplated..." My brother's voice broke through the morning, my door swinging all the way open as he bounded towards the bed and sat beside me. "Are we holding hands in bed? What a charmer you are Jacob Black, next time you sleep here you might proceed to cuddling..." Jace stood as he laughed at his own stupid joke, smacking me on the back of my head before he flounced back to my door. "Dad's got you and lover boy painting today, better stop staring at each other and get dressed it's going to be a long day."

With that Jace left the two of us and I couldn't help but blink a little confused at the whirlwind that had just swept into my room to inform me of the day ahead. "Whoever gave that boy caffeine is going to pay..." I stated loud enough for him to hear as I looked down to the lump that was Jacob Black.

As he let go of me and made his way down the stairs to the kitchen I realised the truth that I had been trying to suppress since meeting him on that road a few months ago. I was hopelessly in love with Jacob Black and I was going to need every ounce of strength I had to survive this.

* * *

"You do realise I would feel a lot better if you would let me up the ladder?"

I turned around, paint brush still in hand as I balanced precariously on one of the higher steps on the ladder. "And I'd feel a lot better if you would stop whinging so we can get this done and we can go entertain ourselves some other way. Plus I thought you would spend your time enjoying the view rather than whining..." I stuck my tongue out at him before turning back around to the task at hand, I heard Jacob chuckle as he held the ladder and I could feel his gaze sweep over me.

Once I was finished with that particular part of the window, I looked down at Jacob following his gaze to the tree line as I frowned. "So what's got you staring off in to the distance? Would it have anything to do with why you disappeared last night?"

His gaze flicked back up to me and I had this distinct feeling that he was trying to blow the whole ordeal off. I shrugged as I began to descend the ladder but when my foot slipped I gave a little yelp before I was swung up into the arms of my rescuer. His warmth surrounded me and when I opened my eyes I scrunched up my nose at the look of worry that had etched itself across his face.

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah and I guess you owe me an 'I told you so'?"

Jacob shook his head as he set me back on my feet, his hands still resting on my waist. His fingers skipped over a certain spot on my back and I automatically tensed as he frowned down at me.

"I'm not going to say it, but I would like to know when you were going to tell me about this..." His fingers traced the spot and I didn't know whether or not I wanted to tell him about it. "I have one; surely you can at least let me have a look at it later?"

I groaned as I stepped away from him, lifting my shirt and pushing part of my jeans down a little as his gaze slipped to the mark he had been touching one moment before. I didn't really see the big deal; it was a tattoo I had gotten on a whim before I had left for La Push. The paw print had been inspired by my dreams of the wolf and had also been a way for me to rebel against my mother.

"I love it..." His words brought my attention back to the situation at hand and I immediately tugged my clothing back into place. But I couldn't stay angry long with Jacob grinning at me like an idiot. I was about to ask what was wrong when he swiped a finger across my cheek. "Blue looks good on you..."

He put paint on me. I laughed and no sooner had the sound escaped my lips I found myself in a fight with Jacob to see who would end up covered in less paint.

* * *

The two of us had finally finished what my father had set out for us to do and despite having dried blue paint all over my jeans and across my face I sat curled up on the lounge as we watched a movie. I had picked it and Jacob groaned every couple of minutes.

He had fared better in the paint fight although he still had a line of blue paint that ran along the back of his neck and he couldn't hide his contempt at my choice.

"Do we really have to watch this? It's so..."

I had picked a horror movie from Jace's collection and normally I laughed at most of the stupid things girls did while they waited for the killer to pounce. But this one was about Werewolves. Something Jacob continued to grunt at whenever one appeared on screen. Finally after half an hour of listening to him grumble I turned it off, throwing the remote in to his lap as I stood up.

"You pick something then...I'm going for a shower."

"Mel..."

"No Jake, tell me later..."

I knew I was acting like a brat but as I stormed up the stairs to the bathroom I couldn't stop myself. Jake had the nerve to whine about my type of movie but he had diligently avoided every question about his disappearance last night? How was that even fair? I thought we had agreed to not keeping secrets somehow but maybe he had had a change of heart.

Was it really that hard to want him to tell me the truth without having to pry it from him?

I shook my head as I undressed and stepped under the spray of the shower, my eyes closed as I leaned my head against the cold tile and as I tried to rid myself of the dried paint on my face I heard the distinct cacophony of a wolf howling.

_What was going on?_

The bathroom door sprung open and Jacob was suddenly there, he wrenched the shower curtain back as he chucked a towel at me without even a glance back at me he was closing the bathroom window. I gulped as I tied the towel around myself, confusion and fear exploding in my body as I watched him tense at every noise from outside.

"Jacob?"

"Just stay here, okay? Lock your bedroom door and don't open it for anyone..." He turned back to me as he ordered me about, his hands gripping my arms as I felt him shaking a little. "I promise I'll explain later, but I have to know you are safe right now."

I nodded weakly as he let go of me and he practically sprinted out the front door. I stood dumbly in the bathroom for a moment with the towel wrapped around me but no matter how many times I ran the situation over in my head I still couldn't make any sense of it.


	17. Chapter 16: In Need of Rescue

**A/N: **Hey all, here's the next chapter. I hope you like it! A lot of drama is about to occur and there's a lot of Jacob love in the next chapter. Depending on how fast I write and if my Jacob muse is nice the story will probably up in rating very very soon. Love you all, punk

**Chapter 16: In Need of a Rescue**

He still wasn't back.

I had spent most of the afternoon in a daze, my homework laying abandoned beside me as I waited for some sign of Jacob Black.

But when Jace and my dad returned home I knew I couldn't hide any longer. A storm had rolled in across the horizon which had caused them to cut their hike short and had half expected Jacob and I to be doing something entertaining on a Saturday.

Jace had dragged me from the warmth of my room down to the lounge room to snuggle up under a fluffy blanket while the three of us had some 'family bonding' over a movie. My feet had sat resting on my brother's lap for the entire movie, before Dad had ordered pizza and we had languished in the lounge room until the rain got heavy enough that we couldn't hear the television over it anymore.

Dad had made us go to bed, for the first time in years he actually checked that the two of us were in bed before he too went to bed.

Even as the rain poured outside and I curled up around a pillow that still smelled of Jacob, sleep eluded me.

I could hear the faint beat from the music Jace was playing and the tapping of rain on my window, but I could feel something deep inside that was wrong. I didn't know if it was just the strangeness of Jacob's departure this afternoon or his continued absence but I knew sleep would not be easy.

Finally as my eyelids grew heavy and my thoughts filled with images of my wolf, I could feel the ever present shadow of my dream nemesis waiting for me.

* * *

"Mel?"

The voice was foreign and even as it nagged at the back of my mind, I could feel myself being pulled from the haziness of sleep. I cracked one eyelid open and was immediately blinded by the sunlight that was filtered through my window. But the thing that woke me up the most was the two hulking shadows standing at the end of my bed.

I jolted up to a seated position as I automatically came awake. My hand coming up to wipe the last remnants of sleep as their figure's solidified before my gaze.

"Embry...? Seth...? What the hell are you two doing in here?"

"Ugh..." Seth looked to Embry for guidance as he scratched his head, flopping down on the end of my bed even as he grabbed a pillow to sit on his lap. The two of them looked about as lost as I felt but I felt more confused by their presence then alarmed by it.

"Waking you up, so you can hang with us for the day..." Embry offered the explanation even as he sat down beside me, his hand sneaking out to ruffle my hair as he laughed. "So what does the princess want to do today?"

* * *

At first having Embry and Seth around was strange, I had half expected this to be a weird dream that I would wake up from anytime soon. I'd only hung out with Seth a couple of times since I had moved here and Embry was the guy that texted me when he should have been at class. But I was slowly getting used to hanging around the two of them, even as they ate me under the table at lunch when I managed to cook them burgers.

We had taken over the lounge room where the remotes for Mario Kart were spread amongst the huge mass of pillows that had been thrown haphazardly across the floor. Embry had kicked both of our butt's and as the victor had been allowed to choose what to watch for the rest of the afternoon. So that was how we spent the afternoon, my head resting on a pillow that was resting on Embry's leg and Seth leaning against my own legs on the floor.

It was easy with the two of them. I could be myself and not have to worry about letting something slip or making a fool of myself.

I knew I must have nodded off at one point of the afternoon due to the fact that I woke up without Embry's shin digging into my face and I could hear Jacob having an argument with someone in the kitchen.

"You have no right to tell me what I should do about this!"

"No, I'm pointing out the fact that you had Seth and I babysit today because you were too worried they were going to come near her. Why don't you just tell her so this would be a whole lot easier?"

"She has enough to deal with, without me adding to it. This is about protecting her, not adding to all the shit she has to go through."

I rubbed my face as I sat up, only to be pulled back to my position by Seth who motioned for me to stay silent as the other two boys continued to argue.

"She's stronger than you think, Jake. Sam told you to do this soon and I'm sorry to say but if you don't tell her soon I will."

What did they have to tell me? Why the hell was it such a big secret?

I had to fight the urge to stand up and investigate but a casual look towards Seth beside me assured me that this was not a good idea. He kept shaking his head and I had a feeling that he was trying to formulate a way to get the two of us out of here without Embry and Jake noticing.

"I'll tell her...soon."

"What makes her so different, Jake? You jumped through hoops to over-ride the order Sam put on us so that Bella could know your deep dark secret but you won't tell Melanie? That's wrong on so many levels man..."

"Yeah but Mel isn't Bella, if she was..."

I couldn't listen to this any longer, it wasn't so bad when they were arguing about a secret but as soon as I heard the love in Jacob's voice at the mere mention of Bella's name I knew I had to get out of here. I cast a glance at Seth who automatically relinquished his hold on my shoulder and shrugged his expression one of understanding even as I stood. Silence fell over the two men in the kitchen who had previously argued as they assumed I continued to sleep.

"I'm going to go for a while; I'll see you guys later? Can you lock the door on your way out?" I could feel a quiver in my voice as I turned away from the three of them and manoeuvred over the piles of pillows to get to the front door. My heart slamming in my chest as I found my keys and jacket before slipping out the front door and into the warm afternoon sun.

Jacob was calling my name even as I heard him come down the front steps after me, but I turned towards him before he could touch me. I saw a flash of guilt and hurt in his eyes even as I shied away from him and made my getaway towards my car.

"Don't Jacob; I just want to be alone for a little while. We can talk about this later, okay?"

I didn't wait for permission or for him to find some stupid excuse to keep me here. I just had to get out of here, away from the house and away from Jacob Black's secrets.

* * *

I had driven all the way to Forks and then back before I realised I didn't want to go home for the simple fact that he was probably still there. I parked my car near First Beach and trekked down onto the sand, throwing my shoes on a log with my keys.

What the hell was he hiding from me?

I could feel the tears pricking my eyes even as I walked, the wind causing shivers to wrack my body even as I pulled my jacket closer to my body.

Was it that hard to not be honest with me? If it was that important that Embry thought Jacob should tell me, why didn't he just do it? Did he want Bella? Was this why he had been running off at weird times of the day all week?

I walked aimlessly for a while before I reached the log where I had stashed my stuff, gathering them before hiking back up to the car park. But as I fumbled with my keys and contemplated returning to my house made me feel physically sick.

What if they were still there? Did I really want to go back to find out what they were hiding from me?

I pulled my battered old converse back onto my feet despite the sand that was still between my toes and I flopped down on the stone bench that overlooked the beach. Maybe if I just stayed here I wouldn't have to deal with all of the drama that I knew was waiting for me back home. I'd told Jacob I wanted to be alone but somehow I think running off would have just made his resolve to talk to me that much stronger. I had a sinking feeling he would attack me and demand my attention as soon as I stepped through my front door.

Jace and my Dad loved him almost more than they loved me. They were giving him pretty much full reign of the house and as long as his presence didn't interrupt school, I think they would have been happy with him being there 24/7. And normally I was glad for this, but today I didn't think I could face Jacob without saying something that I knew I'd regret. He was keeping something from me and at the moment I didn't want to hear his excuses about it.

"Pretty girls shouldn't be crying out here..."

That voice was vaguely familiar and as I turned to the source of the voice, I felt my heart lurch. My stomach clenched as I all of a sudden felt sick.

"You can't be real..." I murmured as I stood, grabbing my keys as I tried to calculate the distance between where I was and my car. I could probably make it, but I didn't really know if he was going to hurt me.

"I assure you Melanie, I am very real. I've been waiting for a chance when your guard dog wasn't around..."

I couldn't remember how many times I had seen him in my dreams but now as I faced him my fear was almost paralysing. He was huge, he towered over me and his deep green eyes were so eerily familiar that I knew I was staring at the same person. This guy had been haunting my dreams and threatening my life for a little over a year and now he was here, standing before me and I couldn't even bring myself to run away or call for help.

"Your fear..." He sniffed the air as he came closer to me, his fingers tracing over my arm as he circled my form. "It tastes sublime. But I'm not here to kill you just yet, your puppy hasn't come to play with me and ruining him is half the fun of this game." He lifted a strand of my hair to his nose and I couldn't help but shudder. I couldn't run but I couldn't stand him touching me either. "You smell of the dogs, Melanie. I suggest you go home and bathe before we meet again."

He all of a sudden let me go but just as my heart beat was starting to return to normal he turned on me. His grip was bruising against my upper arms and as he lifted my feet off the ground I tried and failed to squirm out of his grip. He leaned in closer to me, licking my cheek with a sadistic laugh.

"Tell the puppy, that before I'm done with you, I'll have tasted every inch of you and then there won't be enough of you for him to bury..." With that he flung me across the car park and with a sickening thud my head collided with a tree trunk and as my head fell back against the concrete darkness descended upon me.

* * *

When the blackness faded, I could taste the faint coppery traces of blood that were on my lips. I sat up as slowly so I could bring my hand up to my lips in an attempt to remove the remnants of blood from my face. I couldn't remember much after my head had collided with the tree but I knew that I had to get home and away from this place before he came back.

How I hadn't died I didn't know but now as the splitting pain echoed in my brain I couldn't help but wonder how I was going to get home without crashing my car.

I could feel tears prickling my eyes even as I fisted the sleeve of my jacket to wipe away the traces that I knew had to be on my chin. If someone found me like this they would think that I'd unsuccessfully had a run in with an abusive boyfriend. But the thing was I didn't even know if I could consider Jacob my boyfriend anymore. He was keeping stuff from me and now dreams were clashing in to reality.

Secrets were building up and now after the strange guy from my dreams had attacked me, I didn't know if I could deal with all of this anymore.

"Oh my god, are you okay?"

The tinkling voice behind me made me snap my head up and I automatically regretted it as a new pain blossomed in my neck. A groan left my lips as I placed my head back in my hands, only turning my attention to the voice when its owner's shoes appeared in my field of vision.

When I looked up, she was accompanied by a guy and for some reason as I sat on the curb I couldn't help but be struck dumb by the sheer beauty of the two of them. He was as beautiful as she was and for some reason I felt overcome to be in their presence.

"Bella...step back a bit." His voice was just as beautiful as hers, and I knew the name should mean something.

"Bella Swan?"

"Ugh...Bella Cullen now, but how did you know that?" She had tilted her head to the side in this endearing quality, but I had never pictured her as this beautiful girl who had obviously meant so much to my boyfriend. Staring at her made me wonder what the hell he was doing with me.

"Jacob..." God my head hurt.

"Your Melanie..."

She said it like it was the simplest thing in the world but even as I frowned I wished she would stop talking.

"My head hurts..."

"What happened?"

I couldn't answer her but I could feel the whole incident running back through my mind as I tried to figure out how I was going to explain any of this.

"Someone attacked her...I didn't even know Bruin's still existed, but I guess if werewolves are running around they must be too."

What the hell was this guy talking about? Werewolves?

My vision danced even as I focused on Bella's mouth moving as she tried to tell me something that looked important but I couldn't hear a word coming out of her mouth. My eyes fluttered closed and as I ate cement for the second time today, I couldn't help but hope that Jacob would appear and hoist me over his shoulder like my white knight.

But like they always say, sometimes your white knight is just a loser in aluminium foil. And today, my hero came in the form of a too beautiful person who was married to my boyfriend's first love.

Oh yeah, life was just great.


	18. Chapter 17: Cullen's and House Arrest

**A/N: Yes, I know I'm terrible and I haven't updated in forEVER! But as I am free from University for the next three months I am going to try and get back in to the world of Jacob and Mel. I've had most of this chapter written since October but I just couldn't find a way to end it that I was happy with so I made it my goal on this lovely rainy day to finish it and post it before bed! So here it is. I hope I haven't lost too many people and I promise updates will be swifter. Love you all, punk xoxo**

**Disclaimer: Mel and Jace are mine, everything else belongs to Stephanie Meyer.**

**Chapter 17: The Cullen's and House Arrest...Oh joy...**

I had fallen back asleep as soon as Bella's husband had folded me up in the backseat of my car, but when I felt the jostling of someone pulling me into their arms again I assumed I was home. Despite not knowing my rescuer before he had picked me up off the concrete, I found myself curling around the cool feeling of his skin as I prayed that the throbbing in my head would evaporate before long.

"Cullen!"

The name caused the throbbing to punctuate with every sound as someone approached, I groaned as I felt my protector curl me closer to his body. His grip on me was gentle but I had this feeling that he would no sooner drop me then leave me out on the concrete in the rain.

"Don't Jacob..." I heard Bella's tinkling voice crash through the haze as another car door slammed. I just wanted to sleep and everyone refused to use their inside voices.

"No! You shouldn't be here Bella..." I knew it was Jacob, but for some reason I just wanted him to have this argument later. If I could just curl up in his arms, I'm sure everything would be fine in the morning. I could hear something growling and before I knew it Jacob had unleashed his anger on my protector.

"How dare you touch her, Cullen...How dare you put your stinking hands on her..." He screamed at my rescuer even as I felt him jostling me to place me in someone else's arms. The shivers that had previously wracked my frame were resolved by the familiar warmth that I snuggled into.

"It's alright; I'm going to look after you..." Embry, I knew it was him even as he took the front steps two at a time and then carefully took the stairs up to my room. I felt him place me down on the bed before curling up on his side beside me in an attempt to keep me warm.

"Embry...What were you and he fighting about?" I hadn't realised I'd opened my mouth until my voice broke through the silence that had descended over the two of us.

"Difference in opinion..." He broke off when my bedroom door slammed open and my fuming boyfriend took up all the space in the room. Jacob's anger dissolved as soon as his gaze fell on me, fear and worry circling his eyes as he crossed the room to bend down beside the bed.

"God, I'm so sorry Mel..." His hand sneaked out to trace across my cheek and I couldn't help but wince as the simple act caused a fresh surge of pain to explode. My groan bringing a frown to his forehead as he pulled his hands away from me in frustration, I wanted to reach out to him in an attempt at comfort but at the moment I didn't think I could lift my hand. "Doc Cullen will be here soon to check you out; I promise you will be okay."

I concentrated on the sound of his voice even as Embry left the bed and went to sit beside Jacob on my desk.

As my head continued to throb, all I wanted was Jacob to curl up around me and run his fingers across my forehead to soothe the pain.

But all of the secrets in the last couple of days were starting to take its toll and I knew Jacob was still fuming about my accident. I just wish I knew why he was pulling away.

After being poked, prodded and having a light shone in my eyes for ten minutes I was just about ready to break every one of the good doctor's fingers if he insisted on touching me again.

* * *

The only thing that really stopped me from voicing my anger at being fussed over was Jacob tensing with every movement the doctor made around me. I had kind of hoped that he would have curled up and held my hand while Doctor Cullen made sure I wasn't going to need shipping off to the hospital. But he had stayed standing beside the window and had even thrown the window open at one stage and heaved an exasperated sigh.

I couldn't help the wince of pain that slipped from my lips as his fingers brushed a spot on the back of my head. "Does that hurt?"

"A little, am I okay?"

Doctor Cullen gave me a reassuring smile before packing up the equipment he had spread across my bed. He was my saviour's father and the same alluring quality of their voices made me drowsier than I actually was.

"You've got a concussion, so make sure someone stays with you tonight and rest. Just take it easy for the next couple of days, organise for someone to grab your homework for you. I'll come by and check on you on Tuesday afternoon but you should be fine to go back to school Wednesday. Take paracetamol for the pain. If you have any loss of consciousness or amnesia, call me and I'll head over to check you out."

He paused and out of the corner of my eye, I could see Jacob visibly relax even though he kept his distance from me.

"Maybe you should call her father and brother Jacob, let them know that she is okay?"

God, I must have hit my head harder than I thought if I had been completely oblivious to my family's absence. If I didn't think it would hurt too much I would have buried my head in the pillow, but as the front door slammed closed I knew Jace already knew.

He suddenly appeared in the doorway, his skin flushed with anger before taking one look in my direction and then storming his way towards Jacob Black

"What the fuck did you do to her...?" His voice was full of venom as he grabbed Jacob by his shirt and pushed him against the wall. I had never seen or heard Jace that angry in my entire life, but I think when he saw me something just snapped. "I tell you to look after her and she comes back looking like this, what the hell! Were you even thinking about anything..."

I didn't know if it was just a side effect of smacking my head, but I could have sworn I saw Jace shaking as he tried to drag an answer from Jacob as to what was wrong with me.

"Jace..."

His gaze snapped towards me and it was in that moment that he released Jacob suddenly and crossed over to crawl up on my bed with me.

"Hey lil sis... Can't I leave you alone anymore? Do you have to go running into things just so your big brother will sit with you?"

I couldn't help the smile that graced my features as I let my head fall back onto the pillow, Jace's presence beside me was better than any drug Doctor Cullen could have prescribed me. When I had been little, Jace had always crawled into bed and read me stories when I was sick and I was infinitely glad that the tradition was going to continue.

"Mel, Embry and I are going to go. I'll come check on you tomorrow..."

I could feel my brother bristle beside me as Jacob and Embry swept out of the room with the Cullen's. I wanted to ask why everything seemed so weird, but all I wanted to do was curl up and sleep for a little while.

"Hey Jace... read me a story?"

His chuckle brought another smile to my face as I felt my eyelids slowly start to close, Jace's fingers sweeping over my forehead as he settled down beside me.

"Sure, how about 'Little Red Riding Hood'...?"

* * *

Friday afternoon found me sprawled out across the lounge with my feet resting in my brother's lap while he watched TV and I busied myself trying to catch up with my course work from throughout the week. Dad hadn't taken my 'accident' as well as I had hoped, banning me from going to school and relegating Jace to homework collecting and babysitting duty. I was going back to school on Monday with or without their permission for the simple fact that I was sick of being watched just in case something happened.

I was up to trying to come up with a conclusion to my essay on Shakespeare when my phone chimed from its place on the coffee table. Jace glanced at me before reaching over to pass it to me, bringing his feet to rest back on his lap as he refocused on whatever show he was watching.

_'Hey, how is your head?'_

The same message he had been sending me every day. Jace had been pretty insistent that Jacob was to stay away from me until he deemed fit so Jacob had resorted to sending me a message everyday to make sure that I wasn't dead.

_'I'm fine Jake. I miss you...'_

_'I miss you too, do you think the Warden will let me come over?'_

_'I don't know, maybe it would be safer if I met you?'_

_'As much as I like the idea, I don't want my visiting privileges revoked for longer.'_

Jace snorted as I was emersed in my conversation with Jacob, I managed to kick him as a frown etched across my forehead.

"What?"

"Nothing, if you want to see him how about he comes and picks you up and takes you for some fresh air?"

"Really? You are going to let me out in the sunshine? Aren't you worried that I'm going to die from inhaling a bug or sometrhiing?"

"Ha Ha..." Jace rolled his eyes as he lifted my feet off his lap, standing up as he cracked his neck. "Tell him as long as you are back by 6:30, Dad doesn't have to know and you won't get in trouble."

"Thanks Jace, you are the best."

He puffed his chest out at this as he backed out of the room, looking pretty happy with himself even as I texted Jacob back with our plans for the afternoon. I slipped my feet into a pair of shoes at the front door before my phone chimed on the table again.

_'I'm here. Come meet me.'_


	19. Chapter 18: Red Riding Hood

**Disclaimer: I still don't own Twilight. Mel, Jace and Derek are mine though *dances***

**A/N: New chapter FINALLY! I had the worst writers block for this story and when I finally sat down today it just fixed itself! I hope I haven't lost too many of you, and hope that this was worth the wait. **

**Chapter 18: Little Red Riding Hood**

I found myself staring out the windscreen of Jacob's car with my knees pulled up against my chest as the rain poured around us.

"I guess this ruined your plan of getting me out in the fresh air..."

Jacob scrunched his nose up before he pulled his keys out of the ignition and stuffed them in his pocket, turning around to rummage through the piles of clothes in his backseat before giving me one of his jumpers. I dragged the jumper on, but I couldn't help but wonder when was the last time he actually wore it seeing as it fit me a lot better than it would him.

"What are we doing?"

I didn't get an answer, rather Jacob slipped out of the driver's side, slamming the door before coming over to open my door and help me out. Once he had locked the door, he grinned down at me before picking me up. He was cradling me like I was a bride and I couldn't help the way my heart thudded at the sheer thought of it.

"You do realise I can walk, right?"

"Yep... But I kind of like having you right where you are."

I wanted to pout, I wanted to still be angry at Jacob for his avoidance of my house the past week but I was beginning to realise it was exceptionally hard to be angry at Jacob Black.

* * *

Who knew that Jacob Black was a romantic at heart?

Jacob had brought us to a patch of woods that was dense enough that just a light dusting of rain slipped through the leaves. However, when I suggested that we should just go back to the car Jacob proved he had other ideas.

He pulled me to a stop on a relatively dry piece of grass, plopping down on the ground with his back against a tree before offering the space between his legs for me to sit. I was a little suspicious at first but when a rather large droplet of rain hit me on the nose I scurried into the place he had cleared for me, resting with my back against the warmth of his chest and sheltered in the warmth of his embrace.

I think I had nearly fallen asleep when I felt the feather light touch of Jacob's fingers tracing the paw print tattoo on my back; I couldn't help the smile that graced my lips as I thought about how fascinated he was about the mark.

"Mel... do you know what attacked you the other day?"

"The guy from my dream...I recognised him."

"But do you know what he was?"

This seemed like a loaded question. He was just a guy wasn't he? Monsters didn't really exist, I'd been assured of that since the time I had sworn I saw the bogey monster hiding under my bed.

"Mel, there's stuff you need to know. Stuff I have been trying to protect you from, but now I feel like I need to tell you as much my own sanity as yours."

Dread.

Fear.

Anger.

"Jake..."

"No, you need to hear me out, after I have told you...I promise if you never want to see me again I will step out of your life..."

I nodded, shifting so that I was out of reach for the moment.

If whatever he had to tell me was something that he'd kept from me, I kind of wanted the option to run for it if I didn't like what I heard.

"Do you remember when I first met you I took you out to First Beach and we listened to my Dad and Quil's grandfather told stories about the first Quileute's? How they turned in to wolves to protect their people from the Cold Ones?"

I nodded. I had been fascinated by the stories that night, my first night curled up in the warmth that surrounded Jacob and his friends.

"Well…" He reached his hand up to massage his neck, as if the strain of whatever he was going to say sat right on his shoulders.

What could be so important?

"Mel…The stories, I always thought they were make believe. You know the stuff your parents tell you to make you do as your told…But they aren't. Make believe I mean. Gah!" He stood up as he let out a growl of frustration, he walked a distance away from me before his fist came up to collide with the tree. I could have sworn I heard the tree groan, but I was struggling with a fear that was gurgling up inside of me.

"I'm not doing this right!" He growled again as he leaned his head up against the tree, I could see his shoulders shaking for a few brief moments before he turned suddenly to face me again.

"I should have told you the day I hit my head on your car. It would have been easier for you to hate me from the start." Jacob's demeanour had changed again, he seemed sad almost but I wasn't brave enough to say anything just in case his frustration turned once more and was unleashed upon me.

"Mel, the first Quileute's… they had the ability to turn in to wolves and so can I. The stories of fighting Cold One's? Every single thing is true. The belief that the Quileute's turned into wolves? It's true…right now I wish it wasn't true but it is."

They are true?

"Wolves? Jacob?"

"Yeah we all are; Embry, Quil, Paul, Jared, Sam, Seth...all of us. We keep it secret, but sometimes we have to tell people for their own protection."

"You are lying aren't you, you have to be? Or this is a nightmare..."

I hadn't realised I had got to my feet until Jacob curled his body around mine, his head resting on my shoulder while his arms came around to hold me at my waist. I hadn't even seen him move. My heart was pounding erratically in my chest as I tried to fight off the hysteria that I knew had to be lurking underneath.

"Please believe me, Mel. I need you to believe me..."

"What attacked me? Was it one of you?" I could hear the tinge of fear that surfaced when I spoke, and I felt Jacob tense even as he nuzzled into the crook of my neck.

"No. Never us. We are designed to protect people, especially you. It was something we didn't know existed, but I promise I won't let it hurt you again. Patrols have been organised to stop it from getting to you and your family. I won't let anything hurt you Mel, you have to believe me."

I had to believe him?

I had to.

What if I couldn't? What if this was all too much?

It had taken six months of therapy for me to believe that there was more behind my dreams than just some stupid psychotic break.

But could I believe Jacob Black?

We had both said we were full of secrets, but was this a secret I could live with?

"Why?"

"Why what?"

"Why do I have to believe you Jake? Why am I important enough to know this?"

Why couldn't I keep my big mouth shut? I didn't even know if I wanted to know the answer, I just wanted to close my eyes and wake up in my own bed with this whole crazy idea just a figment of my imagination. For once I wanted to retreat to dreams, because reality was turning out to be pretty sucky right now.

Silence greeted my question, Jacob shifted his head so he could look out at the tree line before he drew in a deep breath against my back.

"Mel. Remember when we first met, when I was fixing your Dad's car and there was this connection between us from the start? It has to do with me being a you know…"

Oh boy, did I know. I wished that I could forget.

His hold tightened around me once more, as if he was afraid I was going to bolt at any second.

"It's called an imprint. It's a connection between a wolf and his chosen mate; Sam and Emily, Quil and Claire, Jared and Kim…all of us felt it the moment we saw them…you. The force between it is so intense that it's hard to ignore, but…"

I couldn't let him finish. I struggled against his hold before I slipped free of his embrace. Anger, fear, self-loathing rolling around in the pit of my stomach as I stood in front of him, my arms wrapping around my body as I tried to shield myself from this supernatural mess I had fallen head first into.

All of what he felt was just forced on him by this…whatever this was. Being a wolf took away his ability to choose.

It was then it clicked, why he was so upset over Bella, why he had really come back after running away. He had wanted her. Her.

And instead he got me as a consolation prize.

What a bitch slap by fate.

I couldn't be his chosen mate. I could barely hold myself together let alone anyone else.

"Mel…"

I turned, watching him as he tried to figure out what I was feeling. I wanted to wish him good luck, because at that moment I didn't even know how I was taking it.

"I can't…I can't do this right now…I have to go…" With that I turned and fled, running in any direction and not really caring where I was going. I knew that Jacob could probably find me with all of his stupid supernatural abilities but I had a feeling he was as confused by my reaction as I was.

I knew I was being a coward but everything kept tumbling around in my head. And my usual way of dealing with stuff was to run away. I was starting to get exceptionally good at it.

Once upon a time, I believed in fairytales.

I remember one Christmas when Jace presented me with the biggest present underneath the tree. I remember tearing the paper off in my childish flurry and discovering a huge book of fairy tales. I remember curling up under the covers with Jace, who even back then hogged the bed, while he read me a bed time story. It was an ounce of normalcy in a child's life that wasn't filled by a parent but by my big brother. I remembered thinking that if I was a damsel in distress I would want Jace to save me from the evil dragon.

Now as I ran through the woods, I hoped that Jace's mystical powers worked on werewolves as well as dragons.


	20. Chapter 19: Maybe I Misunderstood

**Disclaimer: I own Derek, Jace, Mel and this Storyline. Twilight and all its characters belong to Stephanie Meyer.**

**A/N: Sorry about the long wait. This chapter has been hell to write. Hope it was worth it though.**

**Chapter 19: Maybe I Misunderstood…**

Christmas had always been my favourite holiday, mainly due to the fact that wherever Jace and I were. However long or short the distance, we always spent the day together. Even if our mother was AWOL and on holiday with her newest boyfriend or at the 'spa' having work done…I admit it, I always wondered why she came back with two black eyes and a whole new nose or without the ability to frown for a couple of weeks. We always managed to stay together.

Christmas was our holiday.

A holiday purely for Jace and I.

But this year, I couldn't even enjoy my first white Christmas in years. I couldn't enjoy building a goofy lop sided snow man with my even goofier looking brother. I couldn't enjoy stringing a set of lights up and then having to untangle myself from the cord as Jace fooled around with the wiring.

It was all Jacob Black's fault.

Although I had myself to blame, I'd flat out refused to talk or speak to any of them since that fateful day in the woods. And Jace, my big goofy protector was doing a fantastic job of keeping them away.

But I was miserable all because I missed him.

I missed him so much it hurt, but I just couldn't get over it.

He was right. It would have been better if I hated him. It would have been easier to hate him. I just didn't know if I wanted to face all of this right now, I didn't know if I could even fathom what he had told me.

It was Christmas Eve and I had retreated up to my room after Jace and Dad had settled in to watch some sappy Christmas movie. I didn't really feel very festive and I certainly didn't want to watch some perfect heroine get the guy tonight. Jace had known that this thing with Jacob had been bothering me the last couple of weeks and despite me telling him a thousand times I'd be fine, he still looked worried when I left the room, even going as far as to ask if I wanted company.

I was sitting on the window seat, my feet curled up under a blanket as I fogged up the window with my breath. My gaze following the snow as it fluttered down to land gracefully on the snow, when something caught my gaze. My body tensed as I caught sight of a furry thing moving around the tree line on the border of our house. I leaned closer to the window, even going as far as to press my hand against the frigid glass. That was when I saw it. The wolf from my dreams.

Jacob?

No. He couldn't have been. I'd been dreaming of the stupid wolf for years. It couldn't have been…

But it all made sense. The thing that attacked me had been real, why couldn't the only thing that had protected me be real too?

I'd always felt safe in the dreams when the wolf lounged beside me.

I'd known who the wolf was all along.

It was why the dreams had stopped when Jacob Black was curled up beside me.

I didn't need the dream wolf to protect me when I had a real wolf watching my back.

I'd tried to rationalise with myself for weeks that he was a monster, but none of them had ever hurt me. Far from it, they had all gone out of their way to be nice to me. But did I want to be a part of a relationship that was based upon a magical foundation or one that was essentially normal?

Who was I kidding? I would never be normal, I had always been the weird kid ever since the accident.

But now I had pushed away the only thing that could protect me from the world.

God I was so wrong about all of this. I wish there was some sort of manual on 'How to Deal with Supernatural Romance in 101 ways or Less' but I had to try and figure it out on my own.

The annoying beeping sound of my phone rattled me from my thoughts, I scrambled across the room to reach my phone, wiping tears from my eyes quickly as I opened the message.

Embry Call.

'You might wanna open the window, I think Jake's freezing his butt cheeks off out here staring up at you and I have to say hearing him whine is starting to really annoy me. Em x.'

Did I really want to shut them out?

'You're out there too?'

'Yeah, wanted to make sure you were okay.'

'I don't know if I can do this.'

'You can, look at Emily and Sam. Anything that brought them that much happiness has to be good.'

I didn't know what to say but I didn't have to when my phone chimed once more.

'We aren't monsters, Mel. You know us. Trust him, trust me.'

'Tell him, I'll give him ten minutes to explain…maybe another five to stop from freezing to death.'

'Merry Christmas, Mel.'

'Merry Christmas, Em. Thanks.'

When I slipped my phone back on to my desk, I made my way back towards the window. Unlocking the latch before leaning out into the cold to try and spot my wolf. As I scrutinised every shadow and every rustle of leaves, but I couldn't even see the glowing eyes that had been glaring at me before.

I pressed my forehead against the glass, closing my eyes in an attempt to try and figure out what I should do. I didn't think I could continue this charade of hiding when I knew he was out there, somewhere. Looking out for me despite the fact that I had turned tail and ran like the coward I was.

I had made it perfectly clear that I couldn't function if he had to rely on me to be his imprint.

He had wanted a perfect, beautiful woman by the name of Bella. Instead he ended up having to deal with the broken, troubled girl that I had become. If he had of found me twelve months ago, maybe I could have been a better fit for him. Someone who would have made him happy, deserved to have the warmth of his love to comfort her when things fell apart.

The fear that I had felt when he had told me, what he was had faded slowly but what had replaced it was an intense feeling of inadequacy. I just needed to convince my subconscious that I didn't need to be Bella Swan to be accepted by Jacob Black.

_Tap. Tap._

The noise broke me out of my reverie as I shifted away from the window, a gasp catching in my throat as I set to work opening the window.

"You must be freezing to death! God you could have died out here!"

I found myself yelling at him even as I stepped away to allow him access to my room.

"Glad I can still make you angry…" Jacob finally spoke as he and his bag slipped into my room, closing my window as soon as his feet had hit the ground.

"Are you planning on staying here?"

"Mel…I didn't come here to make you even angrier than you already are." He ran his fingers through his hair nervously before taking a seat at my desk, dropping his bag at his feet as he watched me like I was going to bolt at the slightest noise.

I sat down on the end of my bed in defeat, folding my arms across my chest in a stubborn gesture to show that I wasn't the skittish little bird that he was taking me for.

"Then why are you here, Jake?"

"Did you even miss me at all?"

The question tore at my heart, making me feel like I really was acting like a spoilt little brat.

I found myself sighing, fidgeting nervously under his gaze before I nodded solemnly. "More than I thought I could…"

"God, I'm glad to hear that…" He almost groaned as he sunk down in his chair, his hand rubbing his neck as he fought to find the right words to say. "I screwed up, I know I did…but I'd been putting off telling you for weeks and every time I thought I was ready to tell you something came up…Embry threatened to tell you and Sam told me if I didn't say something soon he was going to."

There was a rather awkward silence stretching around us and I knew he was waiting for me to say something to break it but I found myself struck completely dumb and mute at the mention of our last disastrous conversation.

"The worst part of it was that I thought I wouldn't have any trouble telling you, we have never had any trouble talking before but as soon as I began it felt like a train wreck that I just couldn't stop…and for that I am so sorry."

I was sorry too.

I hadn't realised exactly how much courage it had taken him to lay it all out there and for me to throw it all back in his face.

"Were you disappointed that you…imprinted on me?"

He crossed the room to bend down in front of me, one hand resting on my thigh while the other came to rest on my cheek.

"When I first imprinted on you…I was immediately infatuated with you, I had this feeling that you wouldn't even want to give me the time of day. Before I met you I wanted to imprint on Bella, I wanted to have a reason for my stupid puppy dog crush I had on her. I wanted her, but from the moment I hit my head on your dad's car…you had me Mel. All of me."

I found myself leaning in to him, moving so that our foreheads were touching as I realised how stupid I had been not to stay and listen to the rest of his story. Maybe if I had the last couple of weeks hadn't of been so miserable.

"I'm sorry Jake, I…"

"It's okay, I get it… you should have seen Kim when Jared told her, she pelted a frying pan at his head."

That brought a genuine smile to my face as I imagined the fiery girl I had met at the bonfire doing just that.

"It's nearly midnight…Christmas. I probably should be getting home…"

I nodded, not quite ready to relinquish him to the dark outside my window just yet. Not when I'd only just got him back after I had made one of the biggest mistakes of my life. Pressing my cold fingertips to the warm column of his throat in an attempt to seek out his warmth and claim every ounce of it for the long night ahead.

"My sisters are home for the holiday…maybe you can come over? But if your too busy with your family, it's okay…"

I pressed a kiss to his lips in an attempt to shut him up, smiling at the dumbfounded look that crossed his face when I pulled away.

"If you think they won't kill me for being such a spoilt brat about this, I'll come over."

He pulled me into an embrace, squeezing me like his life depended on it and I found myself wondering exactly why I had been so afraid of him.

"So what's in the bag?"

He pulled away to fetch it, extracting a mangled looking thing covered in brightly coloured Christmas wrap with a bow on top, taking a seat on the bed beside me before handing the misshapen blob to me.

"Maybe I was being hopeful, but I might of bought you a Christmas Eve present…it's something my Dad does with us kids. It's stupid, but it felt kind of important for me to do this…"

As soon as silenced descended, wrapping paper was shredded in a record amount of time, leaning into Jacob's warmth as I let out a giggle.

"Thanks Jacob…I love it…And I think I can see the resemblance."

A wolf. He bought me a russet coloured stuffed toy of a wolf.

Despite the fact that this Christmas had been looking pretty grim and miserable when I woke up this morning, it had taken a pretty decisive turn for the better.

"Merry Christmas Eve, Jacob Black…"

"You too, Mel…"


End file.
